The Twoleg Warrior 2: Snow and Fire
by Glacierclaw
Summary: [Rewritten, sequel to TTW][Chpt 12] Much later in the future, Glacierstar becomes leader ThunderClan. She is sent back to the time of the Great Clans and is caught in the middle of a war between TigerClan and LeopardClan.
1. Chapter One :Allegiances:

Yes! It's about time I rewrote this fic! I'm so sorry that it's not in the same tense as the original, but I had more ideas for this one. Very, very sorry, people. For the first time, here's the allegiances.

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**_THUNDERCLAN_**

**LEADER**:

GLACIERSTAR – silver she-cat with a pelt like ice, blue eyes

APPRENTICE, CREAMPAW 

**DEPUTY**:

DRAGONHEART – unusual black, gray, and ginger patches, most of the ginger around head, she-cat, green eyes

**MEDICINE CAT**:

LEAFSTORM – light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

**WARRIORS**:

SQUIRRELTAIL – dark ginger she-cat with green eyes

APPRENTICE, FANGPAW 

SPIDERPELT– long-limbed black tom with brown underbelly and amber eyes

HOLLYTAIL – white she-cat with small brown patches, blue eyes

ASHENWIND – cream-colored she-cat with green eyes

NIGHTCLOUD – dark black tom with silver patches

APPRENTICE, EBONYPAW 

BRANCHTAIL – light brown tom with white stripes, green eyes

BARKSTORM – dark brown tom with skinny black stripes and blue eyes

POWDERSTRIPE – white she-cat with small gray patches, amber eyes

APPRENTICE, GLITTERPAW 

SKYFOOT – gray tom with white patches, amber eyes

BURROWFOOT – dark brown tom, blue eyes

GRAYTAIL – graytom with white patches

SPRUCECLOUD – ginger tabby she-cat

APPRENTICE, MISTYPAW 

PETALSTRIPE – small light-gray she-cat, amber eyes

**APPRENTICES**:

CREAMPAW – small white tom with amber eyes

EBONYPAW – dark gray tom with a white-tipped tail

FANGPAW – light brown tom, green eyes

MISTYPAW – gray she-cat with darker patches, blue eyes

GLITTERPAW – pretty white she-cat with small gray patches

**QUEENS**:

SPIRALTAIL – white she-cat with a black stripe spiraling down her tail, blue eyes

MORNINGCLOUD – long-haired white she-cat

AMBERFOOT – pale ginger she-cat with green eyes

**ELDERS**:

RAINWHISKER – dark gray tom with blue eyes

SORRELTAIL – tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes

SHREWCLAW – small dark brown tom with amber eyes

**_SHADOWCLAN_**

**LEADER**:

TALONSTAR – gray tom with a single white foot like a talon

**DEPUTY**:

SMOKEPELT – dark gray tom

**MEDICINE CAT**:

FLOWERTAIL – beautiful white she-cat, formerly a rogue

**WARRIORS**:

LICHENHEART – light gray tom

DARKFUR – black tom

GREENCLAW – ginger tom

WHITEFACE – white-pelted she-cat

SILVERFOOT – large silver tom

FLIGHTWING – brown she-cat

**ELDERS**:

ROWANCLAW – ginger she-cat

_**WINDC****LAN**_

**LEADER**:

CROWSTAR – dark smoky gray, almost black tom with blue eyes

**DEPUTY**:

STONYFOOT – large gray tom

**MEDICINE CAT**:

CHERRYTAIL – small ginger she-cat

**WARRIORS**:

BEARHEART – large dark brown tom

JUNGLETAIL – gray tom

WOODFLOWER – light gray she-cat

SLATEFOOT – gray tom

PALESTRIPE – ginger she-cat

SNOWFROST – white she-cat

**ELDERS**:

WHITETAIL – small white she-cat

**_RIVERCLAN_**

**LEADER**:

ICICLESTAR – young silver she-cat with a jagged pelt

**DEPUTY**:

B0REALFUR – dark brown tom

**MEDICINE CAT**:

MOTHWING – old golden tabby she-cat with amber eyes

**WARRIORS**:

ELMHEART – light gray tom

RAPIDFOOT – swift black tom

BLAZELEAF – beautiful tortoiseshell she-cat

STREAMTAIL – blue-gray she-cat

SHADEDCLAW – black tom

GOLDENTAIL – ginger she-cat

LIGHTWIND – light brown tortoiseshell she-cat

**ELDERS**:

DAWNFLOWER – pale gray she-cat

HAWKFROST – broad-shouldered dark brown tom


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

I sat beneath the Moonstone, shivering in the cold air. I could sense Leafstorm close by me. In just a few moments, I would receive the nine lives of a leader.

Bramblestar was dead. I remembered him so well, old but fearless, my old mentor, my leader. Tigerstar's son. Bluestar, Firestar, Graystar, Bramblestar, all of them dead. I felt horrible. And now Glacierclaw would be given the name 'star,' and I would continue the generation of leaders.

I wondered vaguely how my Clan was doing. I had had three kits; Ashenwind, Spiraltail, and Nightcloud. They were all exceptional warriors, so strong and brave. The Clan had five apprentices, and that was very excellent, considering it was late leaf-bare. I had an apprentice by the name of Creampaw.

I squirmed a little, trying to get warm. Where were the dreams of StarClan? Had I messed up already?

I slowly squinted. At first, I saw darkness. But when I blinked, I was no longer sitting under the Moonstone. I was just below the Great Rock at Fourtress. How in StarClan's name had I gotten here?

I looked up at the sky, searching for a sign from StarClan. It took me a moment to realize that the stars…the stars were moving. Moving! In a swirling motion, they fell down to the ground, and the cats of StarClan descended down from the sky. I couldn't recognize them in the darkness.

"Welcome, Glacierclaw." A voice sounded, one that seemed to belong to all the cats I knew in my time. "Are you ready to receive your nine lives?"

I stared around at them. In a way, I was not ready at all. True, I was one of the oldest cats in the Clan, but I would never be ready for such a huge responsibility.

But the Clan was counting on me. So I nodded and mewed, "Yes."

Instantly, a large, white, long-haired tom rose to his feet. It took me a moment to recognize him. Cloudtail! Firestar's nephew bent to touch noses with me. He had died about eight moons ago from a ShadowClan patrol. With a voice much younger than what it used to sound like, Cloudtail whispered,

"With this life I give you courage. "Use it well in the defense of your Clan."

I felt a nasty burst of pain shoot through my ears to the tip of my tail. I must be receiving a life, I thought. My mind flickered to memories of bloody battles and hunting.

In an instant, the pain ended. Cloudtail was already padding away from me. A light brown tabby took his place.

It was Dustpelt. I could barely remember him. He had died almost four seasons ago, killed by greencough. Dustpelt's son, Spiderpelt, was my mate. He purred when he saw me and touched his nose to mine.

"With this life I give you justice," he mewed. "Use it well as you judge the actions of others."

I felt like I was being electrocuted as another spasm of pain wracked my body. Dustpelt stared at me with large amber eyes before moving away, allowing another cat to take his place. A small brown she-cat stepped forward.

I drank in the familiar scent of Mousefur. She, like Dustpelt, had been killed by greencough at the same time. I leaned forward, allowing my nose to touch hers.

"With this life I give you tireless energy," murmured Mousefur. "Use it well to carry out the duties of a leader."

Another pang of agony. I gripped the ground with my claws as I felt the sensation of running through the forest at top speed, after what seemed to be a rabbit…

Mousefur moved back into her position in the circle. A fourth cat walked toward me. At first, I thought it was my son, Nightcloud. But no, it was Ravenfur. He had died peacefully of old age. I barely remembered when Ravenfur came to the Clan; I had been an apprentice. That was so, so long ago.

The large black tom purred loudly, the two of us touching noses. "With this life I give you mentoring," he mewed. "Use it well to train the young cats of your Clan."

"Ahh!" I cried. I couldn't help it; I shut my mouth as soon as I realized it was screaming, but this life was so painful that I had to cry out. I had a sudden flash of Creampaw, my apprentice, grown up, strong and graceful.

Ravenfur licked my forehead before going back beside Mousefur. I waited for the next cat to come. When she appeared, I was shocked – it was Sandstorm, Firestar's mate. I remembered her dying in the heat of a territorial battle. Firestar had been there – he had slain the cat who had killed Sandstorm. I couldn't even remember the cat's name, but Firestar had been furious. I had never seen him look like that. Their kits, Squirreltail and Leafstorm, still lived on.

"With this life I give you protection," she murmured. "Use it well to care for your Clan as a mother cares for her kits."

I bit my tongue to stop myself from yowling out. I had a sudden flash in my mind of Ashenstar… Spiralstar… Nightstar… my kits had become leaders. I felt a glow of pride when I saw this.

Sandstorm gave me a reassuring look before heading back to the crowd of cats. I had four more lives to receive. The first was our old medicine cat – Cinderpelt. The small gray she-cat with a crippled leg limped forward, and awkwardly sat in front of me. Leafstorm, her apprentice, had been distraught when she had died of blackcough.

"With this life I give you compassion," whispered Cinderpelt. "Use it well for all the elders in your Clan, and the sick, and all those weaker than yourself."

All the lives before had been painful. But this one was a burst of confidence, reassurance. Love. I purred happily, wishing the other lives could have been like this.

Cinderpelt nodded to me, wishing me good luck, and another cat took her place.

It was Graystar. The long-haired gray tom sat in front of me, restored to his youth. I remembered his kits, Feathertail and Stormfur. Sadly, both of them were gone, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were among the cats here. Graystar had died quite a while ago by a dog attack and Bramblestar had taken his position as a leader.

Graystar touched his nose with mine. "With this life I give you loyalty to what you know to be right. Use it well to lead your Clan through times of trouble."

I winced, unprepared. This life was painful once again. I could just see myself making a great decision for the Clan, some of them nodding their heads and others staring at the ground in disagreement. The vision ended just as Graystar moved away, and a very familiar cat walked toward me and sat in the same spot as all the others.

I recognized him instantly. Firestar! This was the tom who had taken me in as a loner lost in the woods. I remembered the grudge I had had against him for leaving the Twoleg home so many seasons ago. Firestar's last life had been taken during a storm. A tree had fallen on him and Graystar had taken over.

Firestar sat before me, fearless and strong.

My old leader purred loudly and touched my nose. "With this life I give you love," he told me. "Use it well, for all the cats in your care."

There was no pain in this one at all, like Sandstorm's life. I was relieved. Bramblestar moved back into the line, and for a second I wondered if the ritual was over before a large tom walked toward me.

Bramblestar. I recognized his incredible dark brown coat, amber eyes. Like Graystar, he was restored to what I remembered him looking like. A terrible fight had broken out between ThunderClan and WindClan and the two leaders at that time, Robinstar and Bramblestar, had killed each other at the same time. Both had been on their last life.

"Welcome Glacierclaw," he mewed, "my apprentice, my warrior, and my deputy. I always knew you would make a great leader one day."

I dipped my head to accept this last life.

"With this life I give you nobility and certainty and faith. Use it well as you lead your Clan in the ways of StarClan and the warrior code."

I let out a small yowl that was quickly muffled for this life was more than painful. I sat there panting, so happy it was over.

"I hail you by your new name, Glacierstar," announced Bramblestar proudly. "Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, and StarClan grants you the guardianship of ThunderClan. Defend it well; care for the young and old; honor you ancestors and the traditions of the warrior code; live each life with pride and dignity."

"Glacierstar! Glacierstar!" yowled the cats of StarClan like any ordinary warrior ceremony.

But then…something happened. The ritual was interrupted. I looked up, startled, and recognized the horrible smell of smoke.

The Fourtress was on fire!

Flames flicked from all four trees, casting eerie shadows around me. I was terrified. Bramblestar turned toward me, fear in his eyes.

"The new leadership starts the prophecy," he whispered. "An old enemy will return in a unique form."

There was a sudden flash, and I was back in Mothermouth.

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Sorry it's a little short…the next chapter will be pretty cool. Please review! 


	3. Chapter Three

Wow, dudes! Ten reviews? Ten? Wow, you guys must really wanted me to rewrite this… (grins sheepishly)…again, sorry for taking a while. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and now, let's get back to the story…

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Chapter Three 

"Glacierstar?" It was Leafstorm. She must have seen what happened.

I shivered, not from the cold, but from the terrifying images of what I had seen. The Fourtress on fire…horrifying. My brain was swirling with fear, and I tried to remember what Bramblestar had told me, but it made my head hurt. I stood up slowly, padding over to the light brown tabby she-cat who was Firestar's daughter.

"Did you see it?" I asked her.

"Just the fire," she replied nervously. "All I could see were flames." Leafstorm brought herself up into sitting position. "Did you receive your nine lives?"

"Yes." I nodded. "I never knew that the ritual would be so fantastic."

Leafstorm purred. "StarClan surprises us all. Come on, let's get out of here. It's freezing." She led the way into the gladly welcomed outside.

I stood on the stone of Highstones, feeling so proud that I was leader, and one of the most powerful cats in the forest. This would be my first day of leading the Clan, I thought, feeling a rush of pride. I followed Leafstorm across the Thunderpath, being exceptionally careful not to waste the lives I had just acquired ten minutes ago.

As we were walking toward Fourtress, however, we ran into trouble; I scented two, no, three WindClan warriors trotting toward us. I tensed, ready for battle. Leafstorm had not yet scented what I had, and was very scared when the three of them came out of the grass.

One of the cats was the deputy of WindClan, Stonyfoot. He was an admired gray-pelted warrior. The other two were Slatefoot and Palestripe, both of them young but capable.

"Glacierclaw? Leafstorm?" It was Stonyfoot mewing to us. The two other warriors stayed behind, ready for a fight. "What are you doing on our territory?"

"I went to the Moonstone to receive my nine lives," I replied confidently. "My name is Glacierstar now."

"Oh." Stonyfoot looked very surprised indeed to hear this news, and embarrassed that he had not respected a Clan leader. "I'm sorry, Glacierstar. I hope you have traveled well?"

"Well, now we have," I replied, purring in amusement and sitting down. "The Thunderpath is usually quiet this time of night."

"I should have known that ThunderClan would be traveling to the Moonstone tonight," meowed Stonyfoot, still looking sheepish. "After all, WindClan did slain their leader."

I narrowed my eyes. "Yes, and Bramblestar also killed Robinstar," I told him coldly. "When is Crowtail traveling to the Moonstone?"

"Tomorrow night," he answered.

I stood up, not wanting to continue this conversation anymore. "It was nice talking to you, but I must return to my Clan," I mewed. "Good-bye, Stonyfoot, Palestripe, Slatefoot."

They dipped their heads respectfully to me and disappeared into the dense grass. I trotted quickly ahead, with Leafstorm behind me, panting a bit as she kept up.

"That was rather rude of Stonyfoot," she mewed. "He's a good warrior, I'll admit, but he has to choose his words more carefully."

"Definitely," I agreed with a purr of amusement.

I was ever so relieved when the scents around me changed into the familiar scent of ThunderClan. I was so glad to be home, to have the recognizable trees over my head. I walked a little faster, eager to reach the camp.

"Glacierstar!"

It was my apprentice, Creampaw, who noticed our arrival first. He was a small white tom with relatively long fur and amber eyes. He had a sister, Glitterpaw, whose mentor was Powderstripe. Creampaw came running right up to me, purring loudly in greeting. He was younger than the other apprentices.

"Welcome back, Glacierstar," mewed an incredible warrior, Skyfoot. "Welcome back." Skyfoot was very ambitious and thought he was better than he really was, but ThunderClan needed his skills and he was great to be around.

"Thanks, Skyfoot. How is Spiraltail?"

My daughter was in the nursery with kits.

"She's doing well," he answered. "The little kit with whitecough is doing much better."

"Good," I mewed, relieved. "I have to name the new deputy. Excuse me."

I padded toward Bramblestar's den. My den, I mean. This would be so hard getting used to. I stopped when I heard a voice calling me.

"Glacierstar!"

As expected, it was Sprucecloud. The ginger she-cat padded toward me, looking anxious.

"I had Mistypaw do the elder's beddings," she mewed. "Was that okay?"

I sighed. Sprucecloud was a very strong, loyal warrior, but she was not very self-confident. Her apprentice, Mistypaw was probably not getting the training she needed.

"Just do what your mentor taught you," I instructed. "Barkstorm, wasn't it? Just tell Mistypaw to do exactly what Barkstorm used to tell you. Yes, Sprucecloud, that was a good job, but that is expected apprentice training. I have my apprentice doing much more training than that. You are acting as though you are still an apprentice, and I am your mentor. Remember, Sprucecloud, that you are a warrior now." I gave her a soft look. "But you are still doing well with Mistypaw's training. Just keep in mind what I have told you."

"Yes, Glacierstar," replied Sprucecloud, sounding relieved, and padded away.

I entered Bramblestar's unfamiliar den. The scents of him still lingered everywhere I turned. I sighed, settling down, wishing I could not be leader, have some other cat take the job…but that could never happen. I had to deal with what had happened. So I concentrated on the naming of the new deputy.

At first, I thought of Squirreltail. She was a swift, powerful warrior. But she might abuse her position as deputy, boss the Clan around, try to make herself more important than she was. Squirreltail was out, though it might have been sweet to allow the old leader's daughter to take his place.

It could not be Spiderpelt, that was for sure. If I named my mate as deputy, that would not be a good start for me as leader of ThunderClan. It couldn't be Ashenwind or Nightcloud, either, same reason.

But then I thought of Dragonheart, my best friend. She was one of the senior warriors in the Clan, strong, brave. I remembered her helping me out of so many predicaments. She had avenged me so long ago by killing my killer, Flamestorm. There's a long story there, but Dragonheart had been brave enough to kill her own sister.

I stretched, extending my claws. Dragonheart will be the deputy, I thought, relieved that was settled. Now all I had to do was announce it to the Clan.

I padded nervously out of my den, and several heads looked up. This would be my first time speaking for the Clan. I hopped up on the Highrock and yowled the traditional call for summoning the Clan,

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join me beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting."

My Clan left their dens to sit before me. I watched them come back from their patrols. I could see some of Amberfoot's older kits coming out to watch. I was glad to see that all these cats, old and young, had the same look of respect deep in their eyes.

"The time has come to name the new deputy," I began, remembering how Graystar had done it, and Bramblestar after him. "May StarClan see and approve my choice." I hesitated, wondering if my Clan would disagree with who I had chosen. "The new deputy of ThunderClan is Dragonheart."

My friend looked up in surprise; I was glad she looked rather stunned, that way the Clan would know she hadn't asked to be deputy. The gray, black, and ginger she-cat had been badly hurt in the last battle with WindClan. There was an angry scar scross her right eye. She stood up, flicking her tail nervously and proudly, and mewed,

"Thank you, Glacierstar. I am honored to be your deputy."

"Thank you, Dragonheart," I replied, and leapt down signaling that the meeting was over. I padded over to Graytail, who was guarding the nursery.

"Glacierstar." The gray tom sneered openly at me. I was shocked; he had always been rude, but I thought he'd have gotten some respect for me after I was made leader. "Going to see Spiraltail's kits, are you? Hope they'll look like Twolegs, too? Or maybe they'll run away like you did when you were a loner…"

I unsheathed my claws. "Oh, shut it, Graytail."

"Yeah," chimed in another cat; it was Burrowfoot, his brother. The dark brown tom was not as fearless as some of the warriors in the Clan, but he was a thinker. "Graytail, don't. Just, don't. It's traditional – no, expected – that you should have respect for your leader."

Graytail snorted loudly and padded away, muttering, "A Twoleg for a leader…"

"I'm sorry about him," Burrowfoot apoligized to me. "He's been grouchy ever since you were made deputy."

I shrugged. "He's probably right, anyway. I am a Twoleg. Literally." I purred with laughter.

Burrowfoot's expression didn't change. "Don't listen to him, Glacierstar," he mewed in a quiet voice. "He wants you to feel worse than you should. Now, go enjoy Spiraltail's kits. They're growing so fast."

He dipped his head respectfully to me before padding away. I walked into the nursery, feeling rather stunned, but brightened up quickly when I noticed Spiraltail's kits.

There were two of them, a tom and a she-cat. Blizzardkit was the male, a very light gray-pelted tom, and Dovekit the female. She was a pretty, purely white she-cat. Spiraltail, their mother, purred at the sight of me. She had an unusually patterned coat – all white except for the black stripe that ran down her tail like a spiral. Hence her name.

Ashenwind, her sister, was sitting next to her. The cream-pelted she-cat was almost asleep. Spiraltail nudged her as I approached, and Ashenwind gave a start.

"Glacierstar!" she mewed quietly so not to disturb Morningcloud's newborn kits. "I can't believe you're leader."

"Neither can I," I replied, tossing my head confidently to show I was being modest. I did not want my Clan to think I was a terrible leader.

"Glacierstar," whispered Dovekit, padding toward me on thick, unsteady paws. Her voice came out more like 'Glakkertar,' but that was okay. She was only about half a moon old. Blizzardkit, on the other hand, kept quietly to himself, sniffing things on the other side of the nursery.

"Blizzardkit," I cooed in a gentle voice. I flicked my tail.

The light gray tom looked up in surprise, and padded over to me, stumbling. They're so cute, I thought.

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Yeah, sort of an introduction to the Clan, not a lot happening. Please review! 


	4. Chapter Four

A lot of people have been telling me that Shrewclaw's dead, Hollytail's dead, Larchpelt's dead, but I've said that the New Prophecy series has _never_ _happened_ in this fic. Sure, I started TTW with the original characters, but the Twolegs did not start to tear down the forest. That also means that Crowpaw never met Feathertail. Okay? Got it?

Good. Now, here's the fourth chapter. : )

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Chapter Four

Fwapp! Fwapp!

Creampaw struck hard with wide, white paws. I fell to the floor, gasping, amazed at what my apprentice could do. He backed away, eyes wide.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

"Fine," I replied, standing up. "That was great, Creampaw. Who taught you that?"

"Powderstripe," he mewed, standing up a little taller. "She taught me when she was training Glitterpaw."

"Oh." I shook the sand from my silver pelt, and looked up at the darkening sky. "It's time to go. Dragonheart's probably already wondering what has happened to us."

"Okay." Creampaw nodded, always eager to do whatever I told him. He trotted happily ahead of me as we left the Sandy Hollow.

I was pleased to see that the Clan was working well on hunting, patrolling, and making the wall stronger. Dragonheart was doing a good job so far. I told Creampaw to go rest in the apprentices' den with Glitterpaw and Fangpaw as I found Dragonheart eating by the fresh-kill pile. I selected a mouse and went over to share tongues with her.

"Good job, so far," I told her. Dragonheart looked up. "The Clan seems to be completely in order."

"Oh…" Dragonheart looked a little embarrassed. "Well, Spiderpelt did help me a bit."

"He did?" I mewed. "Oh. Well, that's okay, too. Anyway, there's a Gathering tonight. Who do you think should come?"

"Probably not Ebonypaw. I saw him almost feed Rainwhisker a maggot. Nightcloud was not too happy."

I purred with amusement. "I'm sure he wasn't," I replied. "I think Creampaw's too young, as well, and Glitterpaw. But Fangpaw and Mistypaw can come."

"Good. Those two deserve it." Dragonheart yawned. "Being the deputy is very tiring, I'll admit. So, you'd best call the cats to go to the Gathering."

"Right," I mewed, standing up. I padded close to the tunnel leading out of the Clan, and summoned the cats I wanted to take to the Gathering with me. I had already gone over the warriors carefully. "Squirreltail, Spiderpelt, Ashenwind, Nightcloud, Powderstripe, Burrowfoot, Sprucecloud, Mistypaw, and Fangpaw," I announced. I wanted some of the cats there to be ready for an attack from a Clan. WindClan had a reason to hate ThunderClan, as we had killed their leader, but they had killed ours – I hoped that Crowstar would not be as vicious as Robinstar.

I was glad that the named cats followed me without question to Fourtress. I guess they were starting to accept me as their leader. As we trudged through the forest, Spiderpelt moved up next to me.

"How are you?" asked my mate. He was barely visible in the night, his completely black pelt like a shadow. "Is being the leader difficult?"

"What? No, it isn't difficult at all." My mew was sarcastic. "What could be so difficult about leading the best Clan in the forest through terrific times, having a say at Gatherings, and sharing dreams with our ancestors? What could possibly be so difficult about that?" Then I sighed. "It's not as bad as you think, okay? I mean, I honestly do wish that I could dump this responsibility on someone else, but really, no one in the Clan is ready for it. Bramblestar chose me for a reason."

"I didn't expect a long speech," meowed Spiderpelt with a purr of laughter. "You did well in appointing the deputy."

"Oh, really? Are you disappointed I didn't choose you?"

We had reached the river. I winced as I sank into the belly-deep water, so cold for even thick-furred cats.

"No, of course not," replied Spiderpelt, shivering as we waded through. "But…" He dropped his voice to a whisper. "I'd look out for Squirreltail if I were you. She was not too happy when you appointed Dragonheart." Spiderpelt let out a shudder. "The look in her eyes…very dangerous."

I nodded. "I understand. I guess I'll have to stay on her good side. I remember one time when we were all apprentices, Dragonheart attacked her…"

ThunderClan had arrived at Fourtress. WindClan and ShadowClan were already there, talking to each other and sharing tongues. RiverClan was late. I led my Clan down to the four familiar oaks, and, not wanting anyone to call me 'Glacierclaw,' I leapt upon the Great Rock to show that I was leader. I turned toward Talonstar and Crowstar.

Talonstar narrowed his eyes at me. "Glacierclaw?" mewed the huge gray tom. "Or are you Glacierstar?"

"She's Glacierstar," growled Crowstar, glaring at me. "I just hope that she doesn't kill me as brutally as Bramblestar killed our leader, the piece of foxdung…"

I hissed loudly and unsheathed my claws. How dare he! How dare he call Bramblestar a –

"Glacierstar," began Talonstar, taking a step forward, his single white paw the only thing visible on him, "now is not the time for a fight. StarClan would be angry."

I relaxed. Though it infuriated me to have another leader tell me what to do, I could not start a fight when StarClan had forbidden violence at a Gathering. It was a sacred truce that had never been broken in all my time alive.

I scented RiverClan before they arrived; frail, sickly cats streamed into the clearing. The other three Clans backed away from them, recognizing that they were contagious. I did not want to stand up on the Highrock with a leader who was sick…but I did not see Swallowstar's dark brown pelt rushing up to the Highrock; I instead noticed a silver streak running toward the three of us, and leapt up next to us.

This new cat was a she-cat. I was startled to notice that she looked a lot like me – the only thing she was missing were the thin white stripes on my pelt. But hers was a shiny, silvery color that seemed to be jagged, like mountains at a distance. She was fairly young; probably about as old as Graytail or Sprucecloud.

"Who are you?" I blurted out, not liking this cat immediately.

The she-cat avoided my gaze. Instead, she spoke directly to Talonstar as though he had asked the question. Very strange. "My name is Iciclestar. I am the new leader of RiverClan."

"I never remembered Swallowstar appointing you deputy," mewed Crowstar, narrowing his eyes at her. "What happened to Splashcloud?"

Iciclestar turned her fierce green gaze on him. "She died," she replied. "Blackcough." She turned toward the Clans now. I was amazed how confident this new leader was. "Cats of all Clans," yowled Iciclestar, "a ferocious sickness has ripped through the great Clan of RiverClan. Both Swallowstar and Splashcloud are dead, both incredible and honored warriors. Nearly half of RiverClan's cats were gone, and the medicine cat was doing her best, but not even she could stop the sickness."

I looked down at Mothwing, the very old RiverClan medicine cat. The once-pretty golden she-cat looked a little embarrassed, staring at her paws as her new leader spoke about her.

"RiverClan was almost dead, before a new leader showed them the way." Iciclestar was pacing now. "I taught them how to cure themselves of the sickness. Even though they are not entirely cured now, they are doing much better since the last Gathering."

It was true. The RiverClan cats could barely stand up during Bramblestar and Robinstar's last Gathering, when I was still deputy. Iciclestar had really done an incredible job.

"Since I had saved them, StarClan accepted me as their leader, since no one was ready to take the job," yowled Iciclestar. "And I am ready for the full responsibility the position requires."

It was a good speech, very convincing. The other Clan cats were even nodding their heads, respect and admiration in their eyes. Crowstar, as expected, was not that convinced.  
"Where did _you_ come from, then?" he demanded. "Are you a loner, like _she_ is?" The dark gray tom nodded toward me. I felt fury bubble deep inside my mind. StarClan, I hated Crowstar.

"Yes, I am a loner," admitted Iciclestar. "But you Clan cats have much to learn about loners. They are not as untrusting and insane as you might think. Loners can be…extremely helpful. If loners are so terrible, then how was I able to help RiverClan?"

Crowstar opened his mouth to retort, then considered what Iciclestar had just said, and stayed silent.

Talonstar was the only leader who was not completely new. "Let's get this over with," he grumbled, obviously troubled by this new leader of RiverClan.

I decided to go first to show I was not afraid. I took a step forward and sat down, addressing the entire forest of cats. "Since Bramblestar died in the battle with WindClan," I yowled, "I, Glacierstar, am the new leader of ThunderClan." I was relieved to see that my Clan was yowling their approval. "The two new apprentices that I have mentioned previously are here tonight: Mistypaw and Fangpaw." The Clans nodded their approval toward the two young apprentices. "The new deputy of ThunderClan also needs to be named," I added. "The new deputy is Dragonheart."

I guess RiverClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan thought I had made the right decision in appointing Dragonheart because they moved to congradulate my best friend.

"With that being said," I continued, "I would also like to mention an incredibly brave cat who was once in our Clan, the great Whiteflower, who was taken away by Twolegs a moon ago."

I listened to the sad murmurings coming from the other Clans as I stepped backward, unable to stop thinking that if Whiteflower had been here, she might have been made deputy instead of Dragonheart.

I was relieved that the Gathering went by very quickly. The new deputy in RiverClan was apparently a young cat named Borealfur, who had been luckily unaffected by the sickness spreading in his camp. I led my Clan back to camp, feeling tired and cold and nervous. I didn't like that new leader, Iciclestar, one bit. She also acted as though I wasn't even there. What was her problem?

As soon as we were back, the Clan told the cats who had stayed behind exactly what had happened. Some of them were shocked to hear about Iciclestar, others were happy that RiverClan had survived.

It was then, when I was talking to Dragonheart, that Ashenwind padded up to me. "Glacierstar," she murmured, "we have a bit of a problem."

"What?" I demanded, my tail fluffing out. "Is WindClan attacking?"

"No, no," the white she-cat answered quickly. "It's just…I can't find Nightcloud anywhere. The last I saw of him was back at the Gathering, talking to this she-cat from WindClan."

I swallowed nervously, remembering what had happened to Graystar and a RiverClan cat, and was determined to keep my voice down. "Erm…this may seem like an odd question, but how long were they talking?"

She blinked, surprised. "A long time. They disappeared when Talonstar started to speak. I guess they were bored."

I hesitated. Then, "Dragonheart?" I mewed to my deputy. "You're in charge of the Clan at the moment. I've got to find my son."

Dragonheart nodded. "Understood."

"It's best if as few cats as possible know about this," I mewed. "Come on, Ashenwind. Let's go find him."

She nodded, and the two of us took off, into the forest. I was worried that Nightcloud had fallen in love with a WindClan cat, which was strictly against the warrior code. Graystar had sent a great example, I thought, feeling an unexpected rush of anger toward the gray-pelted leader.

"I smell something over there," mewed Ashenwind. She was ahead of me. "It smells like another cat, too."

"I hope he's not being attacked," I said, though that was the last thing I believed he was doing.

Ashenwind and I were right by the river. I could smell cats right by the owl tree – and one of them was definitely not ThunderClan. Angrily, I pushed past Ashenwind and leapt through the tall grass, nearly crushing two very surprised cats.

"Whoa! Glacierstar!" I recognized Nightcloud. But the she-cat sitting beside him carried the obvious scent of WindClan.

She was a pretty, long-haired, white she-cat, who looked very embarrassed and terrified. Apparently, the two had just been talking, like they had at the Gathering, but this WindClan cat was on ThunderClan territory, and I could not allow that.

"What is this?" I demanded of Nightcloud. "What's going on?"

"You'd better go." Nightcloud completely ignored me. I was infuriated. The white she-cat gave him an affectionate lick on the forehead and turned to leave, but I blocked her path.

"Who are you?" I snapped.

"I…my name is Snowfrost," she stammered. "I am very sorry for being on ThunderClan territory."

"Yes, you'd better be," I sneered. "Go home."

Snowfrost hesitated, then leapt into the tall grass. I could hear her scampering back to WindClan territory. Ashenwind stared at Nightcloud in shock. The black warrior glared at me.

"I hope you're happy," he snapped. "Snowfrost is the best she-cat I have ever met. Are you going to punish me? Send me into exile?"

I paused, considering. Then, "No, Nightcloud. I will not tell anyone about this, not even Dragonheart or Leafstorm. But I must ask you not to be sneaking away from the Clan again to see this cat. Sooner or later, someone will notice."

Nightcloud shrugged. I knew that he would keep seeing Snowfrost, no matter what I said. Sometimes, cat's minds cannot be changed. This was definitely one of those times.

* * *

Oooh, the trouble starts. Iciclestar will have a bigger part in the later chapters. And please, please don't forget to review! 


	5. Chapter Five

Swiftstar, you're right – I'm copying a bit…sigh…but the Nightcloud/Snowfrost thing will be much different from Graystripe/Silverstream. Okay?

* * *

Chapter Five 

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join me beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting!"

I watched as ThunderClan came out of their dens, stretching in the sunlight, and padding eagerly toward me, to see what the meeting was about. I shot a glance at Nightcloud. Even though I had promised to keep his secret, the black warrior was still angry at me for not trusting him.

"Today," I began, my loud, clear mew echoing through the clearing, "two of ThunderClan's newest warriors are ready to accept a mentor." I flicked my tail at Amberfoot's older kits, who eagerly marched forward, both of them she-cats. "I would like Dragonheart to mentor Creekpaw."

The blue-gray kit looked ecstatic at the deputy being her mentor. She hobbled down to touch noses with my friend. I hesitated before adding,

"And Flowerstripe will mentor Rosepaw," I added to the pale ginger she-cat, who gave me a very angry look and jumped off of the Highrock to touch her nose to her mentor.

I had chosen Flowerstripe, the small light gray she-cat for a reason. Flowerstripe was quiet and strict, even though she was a new warrior. I knew that she would raise great apprentices, and Rosepaw was the first one I wanted to choose because the little pale ginger kit was a huge nuisance. I hoped that she could forgive me for the mentor I had chosen, but I supposed in time she would come to see that I had chosen well.

So that's seven apprentices, I thought as I too leapt from the Highrock. That's more than ThunderClan has had in moons! I was feeling very good about my Clan's progress as I moved over to talk with Dragonheart.

"What will we do now?" It was Creekpaw, the little light gray she-cat who was Dragonheart's second apprentice. Her first had been Amberfoot, this apprentice's mother.

Dragonheart was proud of her enthusiasm. "Now," she mewed, "you get to know the apprentices in your den. Tomorrow, I'll take you on a tour of the territory."

Creekpaw nodded, her eyes wide and excited. "Yes, Dragonheart!" she meowed, and rushed over to the apprentices' den.

Dragonheart sighed. "I can't believe I've only had two apprentices," she complained. "You've had three."

"Larchpelt barely counted," I told her. "I only had him for about half a moon. Rainwhisker took over because I had kits, remember?"

"Yes, but you've had Morningcloud, and now Creampaw…"

I shrugged. "Oh well, what does it matter?"

"Anyway," mewed Dragonheart, "let's go and see Spiraltail's kits. I think that one kit with whitecough is doing a bit worse."

"Dovekit?" I asked, my stomach flipping. "Oh…"

I didn't meant to favor, but Dovekit was a nice little kit, not that Blizzardkit wasn't. Dragonheart and I padded over to the nursery, where Morningcloud's kits were sleeping soundly. Spiraltail and her two kits were at the back.

I passed Morningcloud. Like Spiraltail, she had two kits, named Pinekit and Rustkit. They were both younger than my daughter's kits. I spotted Dovekit lying on the ground, her brother, Blizzardkit, making her eat something. I rushed over.

"What is he doing?" I exclaimed, careful not to wake Morningcloud and her kits.

"He's helping her," replied Spiraltail, her eyes shining. "Look." It was true. The things Blizzardkit was making Dovekit eat were poppy seeds.

"He must have seen me use them earlier." It was Leafstorm, entering behind us. "I think we have a future medicine cat."

I blinked. Blizzardkit, a medicine cat? I couldn't remember when ThunderClan had had a tom as a medicine cat. I was incredibly proud of him. I nuzzled my nose against his flank and he mewed softly.

"It's still his decision," Spiraltail reminded me. "He might choose to be a warrior still."

I nodded. "Leafstorm still needs an apprentice," I mewed. "Soon, I'll hope."

The three of us left Spiraltail and Morningcloud and their kits alone, and spent the rest of the day hunting and patrolling.

* * *

I was in a field. 

A field that was on fire, fire that rose as high as trees around me, sent smoke that made me cough, made shadows that scared me. It was all around me. Everywhere I turned, fire! Where was the exit? Where could I get out? I looked around frantically, but there was nothing.

And then a silhouette of a cat came out from the flames. It was a she-cat, a ginger one. She stared at me with large green eyes and opened her mouth, uttering some words. I couldn't hear her, I tried to hear and lean closer to hear, but she was too far away. She disappeared, and I woke up.

Alone. Inside my den. I was shaking from the nightmare. I cursed bitterly; I had had them ever since I had become leader. Now my dreams had managed to make it to the part when the ginger she-cat would say something. If only I could have heard her…

And who was that cat? She seemed so familiar. Like I had met her somewhere. Maybe that was just because she looked so much like Squirreltail, I finally decided. That was it. I curled up into a ball and fell asleep again.

In the morning, I padded over to the warriors' den. Dragonheart was handing out instructions to the warriors of ThunderClan. I noticed that Nightcloud was not among them. Snowfrost, I thought bitterly. He's gone to see her. Ashenwind walked up to me.

"Nightcloud's gone?" she asked.

I sighed. "Yeah, to WindClan."

Ashenwind growled and unsheathed her claws. "He's such a furball," she snarled. "What a mouse-brain. I can't believe…" She dropped her voice – "…that he's seeing a cat from WindClan!"

"I know," I replied. "No good will probably come of it. But with Graystar – it worked out okay, didn't it? I mean, he got to come back to ThunderClan, too." I felt a terrible stab of fear – what if Nightcloud did end up living in WindClan? All I could do was hope he wasn't that stupid.

I walked over to the apprentices' den as Ashenwind exited the Clan to go on the dawn patrol. Creampaw and Ebonypaw were the only apprentices left.

"Glacierstar," mewed Ebonypaw, dipping his head respectfully, "where is Nightcloud?"

"He is hunting early," I lied. "I'll take you."

"Thank you." The dark gray tom had a strange personality. He was respectful, but I guess only to those who he thought deserved it. He was eager like Creampaw, but not excited all the time like Creekpaw. Like his sister, Mistypaw, he was quiet and kept to himself.

"Cool!" Creampaw leapt to his feet. "Come on, Ebonypaw, Glacierstar is really awesome. You'll learn a lot from her!"

I almost smiled – if I had a mouth. Creampaw often overestimated me, but it still made me proud. He was from one of Powderstripe's litter, and Bramblestar had given Powderstripe Glitterpaw, her daughter, to mentor.

"Come on," I mewed, leading them out of the Clan. We walked all the way toward the river close to RiverClan territory, and I let the apprentices begin to search for prey. I was pleased by the way that Ebonypaw caught a mouse, but when Creampaw tried to catch a thrush, he was still accidently sheathing his claws when he pounced.

"Sorry," mumbled Creampaw, getting this incredibly hurt, guilty look. I sighed. It was so hard to be mad at someone like Creampaw.

"Right." I stopped in front of a Twoleg walkway through the forest. "Do you smell anything? Dogs? Twolegs?"

"No?" Creampaw glanced uncertainly at Ebonypaw, who was already shaking his head.

"Okay," I mewed, swallowing at Creampaw's lack of confidence in his answers. "Do you think it's safe to cross?"

"Yes." This time Ebonypaw answered for Creampaw. I guess he felt a bit sorry for him. Like I said before, Ebonypaw is a strange tom.

"Good," I meowed, and the three of us traversed across the pathway. I guess Nightcloud had been doing a good job on Ebonypaw, but I couldn't help wondering if I'd have to take on both Creampaw and Ebonypaw's training by myself.

I stopped again, this time deeper in the forest. "I think it is time you were assessed," I mewed. Creampaw's eyes widened, but he still looked excited. "It won't affect you much in the future, but do try to do your best." I nodded toward the apprentices – mostly to Creampaw.

"What do we have to do?" asked Ebonypaw, looking unimpressed.

"Just hunt," I replied. "I will be silently watching you. Meet back at the Sandy Hollow when you think you have enough prey."

"Okay!" answered Creampaw enthusiastically. "Here we go!" He leapt into the bushes.

Ebonypaw glanced at me, I think he was fighting the urge to roll his eyes, before lunging into the bushes himself. I gave them a few seconds' head start before creeping into the shrubbery on the forest floor. I picked up Creampaw's scent almost instantly – he was not taking his time; already he had missed several mice. I followed him silently, sniffing out where he was, and stopped dead when I saw him right in front of me.

He was stalking a vole. I was pleased by the way he was stalking – I'll admit it was very good, and his claws were unsheathed. Maybe Creampaw just had stage fright. I watched as he froze suddenly as the vole started to turn his head away from its preening, but still the prey did not notice him. Creampaw suddenly leapt – I winced, it was way too early, he wasn't close enough. I was sure he wouldn't make it, but this vole was a bit stupid because it just stood there as Creampaw lunged and only reacted when he was just about to claw him.

Creampaw buried his prey and went to look for more. Creampaw was hunting find, but he needed to go slower. I wondered about Ebonypaw. I ducked silently away, into the shrubbery, following the dark apprentice's scent. I froze when I spotted him just ahead. The gray tom was just surrounded by places where he had buried his catches, and they were growing quickly. I watched him, very amazed at his skills. He'd be made a warrior in no time, I thought. Ebonypaw was a great, fast hunter. I wondered how he did in battle. Stop it, I thought suddenly. Creampaw is your apprentice. I shook myself bitterly.

Ebonypaw suddenly froze. His fur was actually bristling. But a second later, he was calm again as he looked around. "Glacierstar, I know you're there."

I was astonished. Now he had scented me! I crept out of my hiding spot, shaking leaves from my silver pelt.

"Very, very good, Ebonypaw," I mewed. "That'll probably be the apprentice catch of the day!" Ebonypaw purred with pleasure. "Keep going, remember, I'll see you at the Sandy Hollow."

"Right." Ebonypaw nodded. "I'll be done soon."

I padded back towards the Sandy Hollow, still wondering about Ebonypaw. Was it his natural skills that had made him like that, or was it his mentor, Nightcloud? I tried to remember who his father was, and then it came to me – Ravenfur. Ebonypaw and Mistypaw were the only living descendants of Ravenfur. His mate had been a beautiful light gray she-cat named Mountainwind, who had died because of an accident on a Thunderpath during a territorial fight between ThunderClan and ShadowClan when Ebonypaw and Mistypaw were only two moons old.

I sat down and waited for them at the Sandy Hollow. A few minutes later, both Ebonypaw and Creampaw appeared at the same time. The dark gray apprentice's catch outnumbered Creampaw by quite a few, but my apprentice seemed not to notice. He was looking incredibly proud of himself.

"Very, very good, both of you," I told them. "That'll feed the Clan well. Bring that back to camp and bring some to the elders, will you?"

Both of them nodded, unable to speak because of the fresh-kill they carried in their jaws. I lead them back to camp and watched as Rainwhisker, Sorreltail, and Shrewclaw praised them for their excellent hunting. I just hoped that Shrewclaw, being grumpy because he had retired early because of a very bad leg, wouldn't comment on the fact that Ebonypaw had caught more than Creampaw. Maybe he'd have the sense.

"Glacierstar." It was Leafstorm, padding up behind me. "I have something I want to talk to you about."

"Yes? What is it?" I asked, swallowing nervously. The look in the she-cat's amber eyes was not comforting.

"I had a dream last night," she mewed. I felt a jolt in my stomach. "It was…flames, mostly. It was so terrifying…" My eyes were incredibly wide now. "But then, a voice rang out. It said: 'I killed her.'"

My heart stopped beating.

I suddenly remembered Bramblestar's words, way back at Mothermouth. "The new leadership starts the prophecy. An old enemy will return in a unique form."

An old enemy…fire…the quote…

It couldn't be. Could it?

Not Flamestorm?

* * *

Oh, suh-weet! That was so well-written! Aren't the apprentices _cute_? I thought they were. Chapter five is the best one so far! Please, please review, people! 


	6. Chapter Six

Okay, for some of you, I think it's best if you read the first TTW story so that some things will be cleared up a bit. Just a suggestion.

* * *

Chapter Six 

I was terrified. The cat, that horrible cat Flamestorm, was coming back.

I paced back and forth near the Great Sycamore, wincing as the cold snow touched my pads. How? I kept wondering. How could this have happened? I had no idea how Flamestorm could come back – she was dead, Dragonheart had killed her, it was impossible. What if she wasn't dead?

No, I thought finally. Dragonheart would have made sure she had killed her. I forced my heart to stop pounding. If Flamestorm _did_ come back, I would be able to handle her, no problem. I was not the foolish young she-cat I had been all those seasons ago. I was Glacierstar, after all. Leader. I had nine lives. I could take apart Flamestorm with no problem.

"Glacierstar?"

I hissed in alarm and spun around, my fur bristled out. But I recognized the long-haired, white pelt of Creampaw.

"Creampaw, what are you doing?" I demanded. "You scared me to death."

The small tom dipped his head apologetically. "I'm sorry, Glacierstar," he mewed. "I just wanted to know where you were and if we could go hunting."

I relaxed slightly and let a purr sound from my throat. "Sure, Creampaw," I replied. "Let's go."

He looked a little happier. The two of us walked through the shrubbery at the ground, scenting for prey. I picked up the scent of a water vole near the river and waited for my apprentice to pick it up. I was relieved to see that Creampaw hunted as well as when I was watching him privately yesterday. He darted into the slightly snow-covered bushes and came back a moment later with not just the water vole, but with two thrushes. Creampaw had no problem finding other prey in the forest. I was very glad; my first apprentice as a leader would be a success.

We hunted for a while, and when the sun started to go down, the two of us headed back to camp. I watched Creampaw drop his catch in the fresh-kill pile. Mistypaw and Glitterpaw walked over to congratulate him.

Creampaw's sister, Glitterpaw, looked very impressed. "That's a great catch, Creampaw," she mewed. Then a mischievous glint in her eyes appeared. "I'll fight you for that big fat mouse right there."

He crouched. "Sure!" And in a second, they were play fighting, rolling on the thin sheet of snow on the ground.

Mistypaw watched them for a while, then shook her head, probably in dismay. She looked at me. "Glacierstar, Sprucecloud is moving into the nursery. Who will be my new mentor?"

This took me completely at a surprise. "She is?" I asked stupidly.

Ebonypaw's sister sighed. "Yes, she is. I believe her mate is Branchtail. She'll be giving birth in about a moon."

"Great," I meowed. "Well, I'll make the decision and announce it to the Clan."

I leapt upon the Highrock, made a quick choice, and yowled out the familiar call for summoning the Clan for a meeting. Almost instantly, ThunderClan rushed towards me, sitting down at the base of the Highrock.

"Sprucecloud is now in the nursery," I mewed, "and her apprentice, Mistypaw, is left without a mentor." Privately, I thought that Sprucecloud's timing had been pretty good – she was not the best mentor in the world. "I have already decided who the next mentor should be." I paused and looked down at the ground. "Skyfoot," I mewed to the young gray warrior with white patches, "will you pass on everything Sandstorm taught you?"

"I will," replied the older warrior, and touched noses to Mistypaw, who swished her tail proudly. I think they were both happy with the choice I had made.

I leapt down from the Highrock. Dragonheart padded up to me.

"Glacierstar," she mewed, "I wanted Nightcloud on a dawn patrol this morning, but he wasn't here. Do you know where he was?"

"Erm…I'll have a talk with him," I replied nervously. Dragonheart nodded and walked away to her apprentice, Creekpaw.

I spotted Nightcloud close to the fresh-kill pile. "Nightcloud," I mewed, and my son looked up. I dropped my voice. "Dragonheart noticed your disappearance this morning. You should be more careful."

Nightcloud hissed. "Mind your own business," he snapped.

I flinched and unsheathed my claws, scraping them against the ground. "I'm trying to help, all right?" I whispered. "I don't want you to get caught."

Nightcloud stood up. I wondered if he would actually slash me. "I _won't_ get caught," he snarled, and whipped around, and went into the forest.

* * *

I overslept the next morning and made up for it by hunting a few things. I returned, still early in the morning, and saw Dragonheart handing out orders to the warriors. She spotted me, gave a final demand, and padded over. 

"Nightcloud's missing again," she grumbled. "Do you have _any_ idea where he's going?"

Her tone of voice made me wince. "No," I lied.

"Well, I hope you find out about that son of yours. He's driving me mad." And she stalked away.

I sighed. Now Dragonheart was mad at me for no particular reason. I was just about to go find Nightcloud when Skyfoot came padding up to me.

"Glacierstar, I can't find Mistypaw," he mewed, looking very frantic. "Ebonypaw says she left before everyone was up."

I felt a prickle of unease run through me and hoped that the thought that crossed my mind wasn't true. "I'm sure she'll turn up," I replied. Skyfoot nodded and padded away.

Great. Now I had to find both Mistypaw and Nightcloud. This was not a good day for me. Just as I was about to leave the camp, a familiar dark shape came streaking through the tunnel. It was Nightcloud, and his fur was all fluffed out.He spotted me and rushed over.

"I found Mistypaw," he gasped. "She's badly hurt – a WindClan patrol attacked her."

"What?" I exclaimed.

"I dragged her as far as the owl tree."

I hissed threateningly. "She was probably tracking you, you piece of foxdung!" I sneered. "All right, go –"

"Glacierstar!" Now it was Burrowfoot. "We have RiverClan invaders at Sunningrocks!"

I was torn apart. Two tragedies were happening at once. "Okay," I mewed, thinking fast, "Powderstripe, Barktail, and Nightcloud, go get Mistypaw. Show them where she is," I told my son, who gave me a dirty look. The three cats left. "Dragonheart, organize a patrol that will take care of RiverClan. I'm coming with you."

Dragonheart nodded and began to hand out orders. Ebonypaw came up to me.

"Glacierstar, I want to go help get Mistypaw," he mewed.

I scowled. "No, Ebonypaw," I snapped. "You will attack the RiverClan patrol."

"She's my sister!" Now the dark gray apprentice's voice was rising. "She's the only family I have left, and she might be bleeding to death at the owl tree. I'm going!"

"You will _not_ disobey orders!" I yowled. Ebonypaw flinched and gave me a look of pure hatred.

"We're ready, Glacierstar." It was Dragonheart, with a band of ThunderClan cats behind her. "Let's go."

I nodded. "Come on, ThunderClan!" I screeched, and the patrol ran through the forest to Sunningrocks.

Dragonheart had chosen well. Ashenwind, Hollytail, Flowerstripe, Squirreltail, Graytail, Amberfoot, Branchtail, Barkstorm, Creampaw, and Ebonypaw were all tailing behind me. I was full of adrenaline and very ready to see how my first battle as a leader would turn out.

The RiverClan patrol was of shocking size – even Iciclestar was there, and her deputy Borealfur. I recognized an incredible, beautiful warrior, Blazeleaf, among them, as well as Lightwind and Elmheart, both admired warriors. But I wouldn't let the number of my enemies slow me down.

"Glacierstar!" It was Iciclestar, from the highest rock in Sunningrocks. "Either you give us this territory, or we will be forced to attack. Which do you choose?"

I unsheathed my claws. "I will not give up my territory without a fight, Iciclestar," I yowled, and my Clan hissed and screeched in agreement behind me.

Iciclestar narrowed her eyes. I knew, when it came to a fight between her, and me, I would win. She might have had the nine lives of a leader, but she was quite young. I could take care of her, no problem! "Fine," she hissed, and yowled over her shoulder, "RiverClan, attack!"

In answer, RiverClan launched into battle. I rushed forward, and ThunderClan followed me. I knocked over a broad-shouldered blue-gray she-cat who looked vaguely familiar. She hissed with rage and bit my shoulder, making me yowl out. I realized who it was – Streamtail, Feathertail's daughter. So there was a descendant of Graystripe alive. I would not let the granddaughter of my old leader stop me from letting this cat know that trespassing on ThunderClan territory was not exceptional. I gave her a painful bite in the ear and sent her yowling into the bushes.

Shadedclaw rammed into me, sending me scrambling close to the river. I leapt as he ran to attack me again, and we both rolled down the hill, hissing and spitting. Shadedclaw managed to hold me down and hiss in my ear, "RiverClan will have this territory!"

I growled and knocked him off me. "Never!" I yowled, and my claws raked his side. Shadedclaw yowled in agony and tried to run, but I had leapt onto his back and gave him a firm bite to the neck. Shadedclaw hissed angrily and gave me a furious look before heading back to his own territory.

I climbed the hill again quickly, eager to rejoin the fight. Dragonheart was tussling fiercely with a ginger she-cat, Goldentail. Ashenwind was just sending off a tabby tom Rapidfoot. Together, Ebonypaw and Creampaw attacked a large warrior.

I rushed to help Dragonheart, but another cat rammed into me. I was shocked to see that it was Iciclestar, and I realized that she had only been trying to get to me this entire battle. She held me down with firm, wide paws.

"You'll have to kill me nine times, Iciclestar!" I cried.

"So will you me," she retorted, and bent down to bite me. My back claws raked her belly and Iciclestar hissed, drawing back. She hadn't had much experience in a battle yet. I rushed forward and dodged a lightning-quick blow of her paw, and slashed forward. Iciclestar yowled with rage as blood poured into her eyes from a cut above her forehead.

She was blinded now. I watched her call to her deputy, Borealfur – but I knocked her over, scratching her with my claws as hard as I could. Iciclestar slashed suddenly – I felt a small pain in my cheek, but it wouldn't stop me. But my opponent was up and ready. I was exhausted from battling, but Iciclestar was not – she just wanted me to die.

"For Flamestorm," whispered Iciclestar, and slashed, with long, long silver claws, and everything turned dark.

* * *

I was back. The field, the flames, everything was back. I felt the familiar wave of sick fear wash over me. I wanted to disappear, to go back and help my Clan. I realized with a jolt what had happened – I had lost a life. 

I had died a second time.

"Aww, Glacierstar, did you lose a life?" The voice. It was so, so familiar. And there she came. Out of the fire, came Flamestorm. I recognized her piercing green eyes and ginger pelt.

"Why are you doing this?" I demanded. "I should be seeing StarClan, not you."

Flamestorm shrugged. "I just thought we could talk," she replied in a mocking voice.

"Shut up. What are you planning? How will you return?"

"I have two plans," answered Flamestorm, "but I'm not exactly just going to tell you, am I?"

"You're dead!" I exclaimed. "Dragonheart killed you! How could you come back?"

"There are many things you don't understand, Glacierstar."

It hit me. "It's Iciclestar, isn't it? You must have sent her to kill me."

Flamestorm purred. "Oh, very good, Glacierstar!" she mewed mockingly. "She's figured it out."

"And if that fails? What will you do?"

An evil glint appeared in Flamestorm's eyes. "I'll figure it out," she answered with a purr of laughter. "But there's more to Iciclestar that you don't know."

And I was in Sunningrocks again, on the ground. The battle was still going on. I scrambled to my feet, dizzy but alive. I looked around. ThunderClan was just winning – RiverClan's numbers were thinning out quickly. I leapt upon a cat that was slashing Hollytail and gave him a bite on the tail. I guess that RiverClan decided that ThunderClan was not the Clan to pick on at the moment, and they all left.

I sighed in relief. We had won our first battle as me leader. I glanced around the clearing filled with fur and blood. "Is everyone all right?" I asked.

"Creampaw has a bad slash on his leg," replied Dragonheart, studying my apprentice. "And that cut on your cheek doesn't look so good, either."

I had barely noticed it. Iciclestar must have given it to me. I was still shaking from what Flamestorm had said to me. I shook my head to get that out of my mind; I had to tend to my Clan now.

"I've got to see Mistypaw." It was Ebonypaw, glaring at me with defiant amber eyes.

"All right," I replied, too tired to argue. "ThunderClan, let's go back to camp."

My exhausted warriors hauled themselves to their feet and padded back to camp. I thought we'd never make it at the speed we were going – even Ebonypaw, with his eagerness to see Mistypaw, was trailing just behind me. But when he reached the camp, he rushed forward to see his sister.

"Mistypaw!" he cried.

The gray she-cat with darker patches was in terrible shape. A long, gruesome scratch ran right down her side, and her ear had been bitten off at the tip. Mistypaw's right front foot was a bloody heap of fur and her mouth was open, like she'd been crying out the whole time.

Creampaw ran to Ebonypaw and pressed his side against his.

"Is she going to be okay?" Ebonypaw demanded of Leafstorm.

"Time will tell," she answered. "I can assure you that she will be training, but the shock might be too much for her. There were at least five cats." She yowled over her shoulder, "Blizzardkit! Bring me some cobwebs, please!"

A few seconds later, the young gray kit came stumbling out of the medicine cat's den with several cobwebs stuck to a twig. I had been so busy with tending to the Clan that I had had no idea that Blizzardkit had been spending so much time with Leafstorm. Maybe it _was_ his destiny to be a medicine cat. Leafstorm gingerly placed the cobwebs on Mistypaw's injuries as Ebonypaw watched, his eyes glazed with an unreadable expression.

Leafstorm looked up at me. "I had no idea WindClan cats were this vicious."

I knew why. WindClan had scented a ThunderClan intruder on their territory for a few days, which was obviously Nightcloud. And when Mistypaw followed him this morning to see where he was going, WindClan brutally attacked her to get her off the territory. I glared at Nightcloud. It was his fault that this had happened.

* * *

All right, their first battle! I thought that was cool. And _don't_ tell me that Sharptooth killed Feathertail, all right? See top note from chapter five to find out why, otherwise I will be relatively pissed. Point made.

Now, anyway, please review! XD Oh, yeah, I just read an excerpt from Starlight - I know what Squirrelpaw's warrior name is! And it's not Squirreltail! If you want to know, I'll tell you via email, but I don't want to give spoilers...


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Mistypaw's condition was not the best. One of the scratches that the WindClan cats had given her was very deep. I noticed that Ebonypaw spent a lot of time with his sister, bringing her fresh-kill and talking about how annoying Rosepaw was.

In the meantime, I had other things to worry about. I knew that Iciclestar had either been sent from Flamestorm to kill me, or that Iciclestar _was_ Flamestorm. Neither of the theories made any sense, but it was all I could think of. I sent constant patrols near the RiverClan border just to be prepared, because I knew that Iciclestar would try with all her will to bring me down.

Newleaf was coming soon. The snow was slowly melting and flowers were blooming again. Even though we had been catching many prey in the forest, I knew that newleaf would bring so many more.

I returned from the patrol with Barkstorm and Ebonypaw. The young black apprentice rushed up to the fresh-kill pile and dropped some of his prey, then selected a mouse and padded toward the medicine cat's den. I caught up with him.

"Ebonypaw," I mewed and the tom turned around. "I'm very sorry that I wouldn't let you help rescue Mistypaw."

Ebonypaw narrowed his amber eyes.

"I had two things happening at once," I explained, sitting down and curling my tail around my paws. "The RiverClan invasion, and Mistypaw. I'm still new at this," I added, showing weakness for the first time. I hoped that if Ebonypaw noticed that I was admitting that I wasn't used to being leader, he would let me off easier.

I wasn't so lucky. The dark gray tom stuck his face in mind and hissed, "Barkstorm told me that Mistypaw was awake when they found her. If she had had her brother beside her, she probably wouldn't be in such a state of shock." A gleam appeared in his eyes. "I'm going to find out what she was doing, and I'm sure that you have something to do with it!" And he turned around and headed toward the medicine cat's den.

Well, that could have gone better, I thought as I padded away. But I had to warn Nightcloud about what Ebonypaw was planning to do. I headed toward the warriors' den and was relieved to find my dark-pelted son inside, washing himself.

"Nightcloud," I mewed, sitting down, "Ebonypaw's trying to figure out what Mistypaw was doing when she was attacked. You'll have to watch out."

Nightcloud didn't look up. He shrugged. "An apprentice will never find out," he meowed.

"Ebonypaw's very smart," I snapped. "He might figure it out."

"Even if he does and tells the whole Clan, I'm not going to stop seeing Snowfrost," he told me.

I whipped around sharply in frustration. "Fine," I mewed, "but pretty soon, you'll have to decide where you belong."

I exited the warriors' den, fuming. Was Nightcloud really that stupid? I turned around to talk to Dragonheart and nearly ran into Dovekit. Even though she was about a moon old now, Dovekit's speech was getting much better.

"Glacierstar," she mewed, "you will encounter a rogue on darkness's border." And she padded away.

What the…I turned around to ask what in StarClan's name she meant, but Dovekit was already gone. Feeling mystified and confused, I headed over to speak to Dragonheart.

"That was weird," whispered the gray, black, and ginger she-cat.

"I know," I agreed. "Dovekit is strange, isn't she?"

"It almost sounded like a prophecy," mewed Dragonheart. "Maybe Dovekit was just playing around."

"What are you whispering about?" I looked up and recognized Graytail's silver fur with white patches. I was about to answer when he sneered, "Plotting to run away, loners and kittypets? Going to leave us?"

Dragonheart said some words I didn't even know she knew. Graytail, in return, scowled and walked away.

* * *

The next few days in ThunderClan camp were not exactly enjoyable. Mistypaw's condition was steadily getting better, and Graytail's comments were getting more and more insulting because I had lost a life in my first battle as leader. 

The good news was our apprentices' training was going very well – Fangpaw, Squirreltail's apprentice, would be made a warrior very soon. On the first day of newleaf, when all the snow was melted, I made him a warrior at sunhigh.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join me beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting!" I called. My Clan left their duties and came over to sit in the clearing below me.

I swallowed nervously. This would be the first time I had made an apprentice a warrior since becoming leader. "A certain apprentice has proven himself worthy for the name of a true warrior," I announced, and searched the crowd for Fangpaw. I spotted the light brown tom sitting with his pelt groomed sleekly, and I flicked my tail at the older apprentice to sit beside me.

Fangpaw came up, his head raised confidently. I turned my head up toward the sky and yowled, "I, Glacierstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn."

I stared down at the excited tom and mewed, "Fangpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"

Fangpaw nodded eagerly. "I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name: Fangpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Fangmouth. StarClan honors your determination and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

I bent down to allow Fangmouth to rest his head on mine as the Clan cheered his new name. "Fangmouth! Fangmouth!"

He came down from the Highrock and sat in the middle of the clearing, pretending to sit vigil. Fangmouth's old denmates, the apprentices, came over to congradulate him.

I padded over to Skyfoot and Ashenwind, who were sharing tongues nearby. "Want to go on a patrol?" I asked them.

"Sure," replied Ashenwind, but Skyfoot stayed silent. I knew he must have felt guilty after what had happened to his apprentice, Mistypaw, and I hoped that asking him to go on a patrol with the leader would let him know I didn't blame him.

"Go get Creampaw," I mewed to Ashenwind, who sprang to her feet and left to go get my apprentice. "Skyfoot, what happened was completely not your fault, you know. You never could have known that Mistypaw was going to get up that early, and do whatever she was doing…" I really hated lying. Nightcloud, why did you have to start this?

Skyfoot shrugged. "I don't feel that way. It just bothers me that I have no idea what she was doing at the time, and I'm supposed to be her mentor."

I swallowed hard. "I – I don't know what she was doing, either," I mewed nervously.

At that moment, Ashenwind chose the time to appear with a very excited Creampaw. It was an honor to go on a patrol with the more experienced warriors. We walked out of the camp, Creampaw far in the lead.

"Creampaw, save your energy," I called. "You can't get tired already, you know."

Creampaw halted in front of a fallen log and waited for us.

"Where do you want to go?" asked Skyfoot.

Not by RiverClan's border, I thought. I had been carefully avoiding that area since I had learned about Iciclestar. "Let's go look by the great sycamore," I mewed. "The hunting's supposed to be good there, anyway."

The other three agreed. We padded slowly there, conserving our energy, and stepped into the clearing with no trees. I sniffed around and was relieved when I tasted the scent of prey.

"Hey!"

It was Creampaw. His tail was fluffed out and he was staring at something close by.

"Those are ShadowClan cats!" he cried. "And they're taking prey!"

That got my attention. I whipped around and rushed forward, recognizing the four ShadowClan cats who were stealing prey: Greenclaw, Darkfur, and Whiteface. I ran after them as they bolted toward their territory, and I could see prey in their jaws.

The cats were much too fast, but I wouldn't let borders stop me from clawing their ears off. I waited for a monster to pass before dashing across the Thunderpath to catch up with the cats, but they were already gone.

"Mousedung!" It was Creampaw, just coming up beside me with Skyfoot and Ashenwind. "We lost them."

I scowled. "I'll have something to discuss with Talonstar," I growled. "Cats stealing prey, I don't believe it –"

An angry meow sounded from the bushes behind us. I leapt up in shock and whipped around – an unknown white she-cat was standing there, hissing.

"You're on ShadowClan territory!" she snapped. "Get off!" I admired her courage. There were four of us, one of her. But judging by the dropped herbs nearby, this cat was a medicine cat.

"Sorry," I mewed, dipping my head. "I didn't know that ShadowClan had a new medicine cat."

She snarled at me. "Stuff it, Glacierstar," leered the she-cat. "You're from out of the forest, too, aren't you? Loner? I'm a rogue."

"Who are you?" asked Ashenwind.

The former rogue glared. "Flowertail," she snapped, her sharp green eyes leering at me. "Get out of here, Glacierstar, you heap of foxdung!" cried Flowertail, kneading her claws against the earth. "I'd do well to slice your ears off, but you're going to be destroyed anyway –"

I gaped at her. "What?"

"Get out!" Flowertail hissed at us, slashing her claws. "Get out, get out –"

We fled, not wanting to anger the she-cat any further. I waited at the Thunderpath as another monster went rushing by, making the ground shake. I hastily crossed, with Ashenwind, Skyfoot, and Creampaw right behind me. Creampaw stopped once we were back in our territory and gave his white fur a quick, nervous lick.

"She was rude," he mewed.

"Definitely," agreed Ashenwind with a disgusted grunt. "I can't believe that ShadowClan keeps taking in rogue cats. Boulder, now Flowertail…"

I was barely listening. My mind was completely focused on what Flowertail had said back there – what about the 'you're going to be destroyed anyway.' I felt a cold shiver run through me, and I had a flash of what Dovekit had said to me only two sunrises ago.

My head snapped up. Maybe, that little, fluffy white kit, was somehow a link with StarClan.

* * *

After that little episode, I was keeping a very good eye on Dovekit. But the kit never made any sign that she might be a link with our ancestors - she was acting just like a normal, happy, playful kit. I wanted to ask her about it, but I didn't want to trouble her. 

About half a moon later, on the day of the next Gathering, Sprucecloud gave birth to three healthy toms. Crimsonkit, Flickerkit, and Hazekit were their names, two ginger and one gray kit. There were now quite a lot of kits in the nursery.

I named a few cats to come to the Gathering with me. I wanted to make sure that the camp was well guarded in case Iciclestar decided to give me another warning. I was not looking forward to seeing her again.

But still, I had to find out what the connection was between her and Flamestorm. When ThunderClan was busy talking with the other Clans, I padded away to find Iciclestar before she had time to get to the Highrock.

I spotted the silver she-cat speaking to her deputy, Borealfur, and padded over to the leader of RiverClan.

"Iciclestar," I whispered.

She turned around, and her amber eyes narrowed. "Borealfur, excuse me," mewed Iciclestar. The dark brown tom nodded and padded away. The silver she-cat glared at me. "What?"

"You know perfectly well what," I hissed. "What is your connection with Flamestorm?"

Iciclestar scowled. "Ah. You know about that, do you? Well, I'm not about to tell you Flamestorm's secrets."

I was not finished. "All right then, you won't tell me. How about this: _what_ are you? I'll bet you aren't a loner."

Iciclestar hesitated. She opened her mouth, then closed it again, and for a second I saw a flash in her eyes that was no doubt fear. But she recovered herself quickly. "I told you," snapped Iciclestar, "I am a loner. Nothing else."

I grunted and turned away. It wouldn't matter; I'd find out soon enough. The meeting was starting very soon, so I joined Talonstar and Crowstar up on the Highrock, with Iciclestar not far behind. I gave Talonstar a very dirty look but wouldn't challenge him until they all had had a chance to speak.

Crowstar stepped forward first. "An apprentice has been made a warrior," began the dark gray tom as the Clans murmured their congradulations. "Twirlpaw has become Twirlstripe." I spotted the new tabby warrior in the crowd, staring down at his paws in an embarrassed sort of way. "Clans should also be warned of foxes that were by the river when we were passing by. They attacked us, but no harm was done."

So there was a fox by the river. The ThunderClan cats would always have to cross it when going to a Gathering and back. We'd have to be extra careful.

I was eager to speak when Crowstar was done, but Iciclestar took my place first. She too spoke about the dogs and about a new apprentice, and then it was it was my turn. I took it before Talonstar could move.

"We have a new warrior with us today," I announced, getting used to speaking at a Gathering. "Fangmouth, who has just earned his warrior name a few nights ago, is now a full warrior in ThunderClan." Cats cheered for Fangmouth.

I decided not to mention the RiverClan invasion a few weeks ago. Iciclestar was our problem, not the other Clans'. But as for ShadowClan, if they were willing to steal to get food, then the other Clans needed to know about it. "Not only that," I added, "but just a couple days ago, three ShadowClan warriors were caught stealing prey on ThunderClan territory."

Howls out outrage came from all four Clans – ThunderClan, for what they had done, WindClan and RiverClan, warning them not to do it on their territory, and ShadowClan – totally disagreeing with me.

Talonstar stepped up to me, his fur bristling with fury. "We never stole anything!" he snapped.

"I saw those three with my own eyes!" I growled, swishing my tail. "I could give you their names, if you want!"

"You made a mistake," snarled Talonstar. "We have never stolen a thing from your territory."

"If that is true, then we have no way to prove it," I mewed. "I will give you a warning anyway: if your Clan is ever caught stealing prey from ThunderClan territory, we will have your ears off." And I turned around and padded back to sit next to Crowstar.

Talonstar let out a growl deep in his throat and took his turn to speak. I was very glad when the Gathering was over; the tension between ThunderClan and ShadowClan was overwhelming.

I padded back to ThunderClan territory, with Dragonheart by my side and the rest of the Clan behind me. "You shouldn't have mentioned them stealing prey," mewed Dragonheart.

I looked at her in surprise. "Why not?"

"Because Crowstar never mentioned the ThunderClan intruder – Mistypaw. He might not be so nice next time."

I hadn't even noticed. "But the Clans don't need to know about Mistypaw – they just need to know about the ShadowClan cats who were willing to steal."

"Yes, but they don't know that Mistypaw wasn't trying to steal, either."

I was slowly starting to realize the sense in Dragonheart's words and wished I hadn't told the Clans about that. I suddenly remembered the foxes that Crowstar had warned us about, and realized that they were by the river, but still could be close.

I learned that they were very close, actually. I heard a sudden growling from the side and in an instant, a ginger fox leaped out of the bushes. I let out a snarl of a battle cry and launched myself at the fox's eyes. It tossed its head and knocked me aside, but I managed to get ahold of its back and hang on.

There were more foxes attacking my Clan, too. I could see Hollytail and Ashenwind fighting side-by-side against one, with Barkstorm rushing to help. In all, there had to have been four foxes.

I gave the fox that I was riding on a firm bite in the ear. The dog-like animal yelped with rage and tossed its head, trying very hard to get me off. I dug my claws into its skin, making it yowl further. The fox decided that I was not the best meal at the moment, and it tore off toward the Thunderpath. I leapt from its back and felt very proud of myself – I had just beaten a fox!

I rushed back to help my Clan, giving a larger fox a nip on the tail. It let out a cry and whipped around to bite me, but I was already in front of it. I scratched it hard on its ears, and the fox barked with anger.

I felt something like relief flow through me. We were going to win! At least there were many of us, or we wouldn't have stood a chance against four foxes.

But then I felt something hard slam into me. I gasped in alarm as I tumbled over a rocky face and felt my back legs touch nothingness. I scrabbled to get a hold with my front claws on the stone and realized that I was trapped, right there – on the edge of the cliff, hanging over the falls.

I tried to bring myself up, but it was impossible. My claws were slipping, making scratches in the rock. I tried to call my warriors to help me, but they were busy fighting the foxes.

Then I saw the real reason I had been slammed – none other than Iciclestar was walking toward me, a look of both triumph and fear in her eyes. I gasped, terrified. She was going to kill me! She was going to do what Flamestorm asked of her!

"Iciclestar!" I pleaded. "Please! Wait!" I scrabbled desperately, trying to get back up.

There was fear in the RiverClan leader's eyes now. I winced as she unsheathed her claws and prepared to knock me over the edge, into the rushing river below.

_Do it!_ I could almost hear Flamestorm's voice, commanding Iciclestar with an eager triumph.

But then…Iciclestar pulled back. Her eyes widened. "I can't," she whispered. "I…"

I was amazed. Iciclestar wouldn't kill me? This'll make Flamestorm happy…

"Glacierstar," she mewed at last, reaching over to help me, "you're right. I wasn't a loner. I…" Her voice dropped so I could barely hear. "I'm what you were. What you used to be. A human."

* * *

Oooh, that was tragic. This was probably the longest chapter I've ever written. Please review! 


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

I stared with disbelief into her fierce green eyes, wondering at first how she could have known that I had once been human – but then it came to me that Flamestorm had probably told her.

Iciclestar grabbed me by the scruff of my neck and pulled me up safely. I panted for a moment before gasping,

"You were human?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Flamestorm convinced me, through dreams, that I could have a better life as a cat – but all I had to do was defeat a certain cat."

"Me," I mewed.

"Yes," replied Iciclestar. "I don't think she'll be pleased that I failed her."

"She has another plan," I told her. "I don't know what it is, but it'll probably be awfully tough. Will you help me defeat Flamestorm?"

Iciclestar hesitated. "I could try," she replied finally.

"How did Flamestorm send you the dreams?"

"She had to use a medicine cat," answered Iciclestar. "A medicine cat who had recently become in contact with StarClan."

"Flowertail." I knew the answer immediately.

Iciclestar looked surprised, and nodded. "Yes, her. She was a rogue, and didn't trust the Clans immediately."

My ears pricked as I heard the sound of the foxes running away. "You'd best go," I mewed quietly. "My Clan is coming."

The silver-pelted she-cat nodded and bolted away, toward RiverClan territory. I rushed back to my Clan and Dragonheart padded up to me.

"Are you all right?" she asked. "I saw you tumbling away, I thought you'd fallen over the cliff…"

I shook my head. "I'm fine, Dragonheart." I realized that Dragonheart had a right to know what was going on with Flamestorm. After all, Flamestorm and Dragonheart were sisters, and my deputy had killed the ambitious warrior so many seasons ago. I'll tell her when we get back, I decided.

"Leafstorm." I called over to the medicine cat. "Is anyone injured?"

The brown tabby shook her head. "We were all lucky," she murmured.

"Good," I mewed, and yowled to my Clan. "ThunderClan, let's go home."

The other cats exhaustedly rose to their paws and headed back into ThunderClan territory. I stopped when Creampaw padded up to me. I had almost forgotten that that had been his first Gathering.

"Did you see me take on those foxes, Glacierstar?" he asked me, his fur still bristling and his amber eyes glittering. "I sent one running!"

"Good," I mewed, a little distracted as we headed home.

"I think he's almost ready to become a warrior," added Glitterpaw. "Actually, we both are!"

I chuckled. "You only became apprentices about two moons ago," I pointed out. "You'll probably be apprentices for a bit longer."

The two apprentices looked a bit downcast as we came through the tunnel leading into our camp. As soon as we arrived, Ebonypaw, his eyes very wide and his fur bristling out, came rushing up to me.

"It's Mistypaw!" he cried frantically. "She's getting worse."

"Leafstorm!" I yowled, and the she-cat hurried to me. "Come on!"

The three of us bolted into the medicine cat's den, where a frightened, weak, gasping Mistypaw was fighting for her life.

"It's infected," mewed Leafstorm, bending over the wound on Mistypaw's side. "With a cut that large, I don't know what we'll be able to do…"

"Mistypaw!" cried Ebonypaw, knocking Leafstorm aside. "Come on, Mistypaw, fight it!"

"Ebonypaw…" she whispered, her voice barely audible, "don't forget to be the best warrior you can be. Brother…"

The dark gray tom moaned as he realized what she meant. "Mistypaw, no!"

It was too late. Mistypaw's eyes closed, and she was dead. Ebonypaw let out a wail of utter sadness and laid himself down next to Mistypaw's body. My heart was aching with sympathy for him. Ebonypaw had lost his entire family now. The sympathy turned to anger toward Nightcloud – if he hadn't been going to see Snowfrost, none of this would have happened…

"She hunts with StarClan now," whispered our medicine cat. She looked at me. "We have to tell the Clan," mewed Leafstorm. I nodded silently and padded outside, where ThunderClan was waiting anxiously.

I stopped next to Spiderpelt, and told them all, "She's dead."

Hollytail murmured sad words and nudged her friend Squirreltail. Even Graytail seemed sympathetic. Skyfoot, Mistypaw's mentor, just stared emptily into space.

I turned my head and looked directly into Nightcloud's eyes. He looked positively terrified already, and turned around and bolted away. I began to walk after him, thinking, this time, he is not getting away.

"I'll be back," I told them. "I'll sit vigil with Mistypaw in a moment."

I rushed into the outside forest, picking up Nightcloud's scent. Yes, he had gone to WindClan. Typical. I raced after him, leaping over a fallen log. He was going awfully fast, because I was running at top speed. I paused when I reached the river, which was still slightly swollen, and sniffed the air cautiously for the foxes. They weren't there, so I continued toward WindClan territory.

I winced as the small rocks clawed at the pads on my feet. I wasn't so sure I liked this territory, but I still wanted to stop Nightcloud from seeing Snowfrost once and for all. I could just see his dark fur from inside a patch of tall grass, and crept slowly toward it. As I expected, Snowfrost was already padding to Nightcloud, her tail swishing happily, but her face darkened when she saw Nightcloud's expression.

"What's happened?" she asked.

"Remember the apprentice who was attacked a while ago?" mewed Nightcloud bitterly, and Snowfrost's eyes narrowed. "She's dead."

Snowfrost gasped and rubbed herself against Nightcloud's fur. "I know how it feels to lose an apprentice," she murmured.

"Well, she wasn't my apprentice," mewed Nightcloud, and the white she-cat jerked back in shock.

"What? But I thought that you had a descendant of Ravenfur!"

Nightcloud looked stunned. "Yes. I had his son, Ebonypaw. Skyfrost had the daughter, Mistypaw."

"So one of them's still alive?" demanded Snowfrost furiously. I blinked in confusion.

My son looked the same way. "Well…yes. Ebonypaw, my apprentice. I guess I should have stopped bragging about having a descendant of Ravenfur as an apprentice and tell you the name of –"

"I don't care!" snapped Snowfrost, and turned her head up and yowled a war cry-like scream that alerted several cats around her. They closed in a circle around Nightcloud. Snowfrost put her face in his and whispered, "You know those five cats who attacked that stupid apprentice?" A gleam appeared in her eyes. "One of them was me."

* * *

I almost let out a yowl of pure rage, but I was still utterly confused. Why would Snowfrost want to harm one of Ravenfur's kits on purpose and set it up so carefully that Nightcloud wouldn't guess it was she who did it?

Nightcloud's mouth worked noiselessly, he was so shocked. I didn't blame him. I'd never thought either that Snowfrost was capable of being so evil.

"You tricked me!" he finally cried. "You wanted to attack Mistypaw on purpose!" He glared at her. "But why were you so shocked when you learned that Ravenfur had _two_ descendants?"

Snowfrost sat down calmly. "I can't tell you that." She nodded to the cats around her. "Attack!" she commanded.

They leaped out of the grass. I was stunned to see that Stonyfoot was among them. I had always thought that he was a good warrior, but I guess all cats can change. Nightcloud was soon buried under the WindClan cats. I circled around the clearing until I was right behind him, and pounced, locked my jaws around a warrior named Bearheart's neck, and threw him to the side. I dragged Nightcloud out and hissed at him to follow me back to camp.

"What the…Glacierstar?" he mewed in surprise as we ran to ThunderClan territory.

"The same," I grunted, paws pounding on the ground. I glanced behind me and saw that all of the cats were still chasing us. "Hurry on back to camp," I told Nightcloud. "Give the warning that they have enemies. I have to do something first."

"I – okay," muttered Nightcloud and ran faster. I veered to one side and two of the cats followed me – the others continued chasing Nightcloud.

I threw the first one to the side and gave him a nasty bite to the neck. The other one leapt at me, but I kicked him backward. Yes! I was free to chase Snowfrost. I jumped to my feet and hurried into the forest, fast as a rabbit. I could see her white fur just ahead of me, and shot forward, faster than I've ever gone before. My teeth nipped her tail and she yowled out, glaring at me and then tripping. I leapt on her tumbling body and managed to pin her down safely. She leered at me with angry green eyes.

"Let me go, Glacierstar!" snarled Snowfrost.

"I don't think so," I snapped, pressing harder. "Now, what is your goal?" I already had part of an idea.

Snowfrost glared at me. "I'll suppose you already know," she growled. "It's about Flamestorm, okay?"

"Ah," I mewed. "So she's been sending you dreams, too."

"She told us we could be the most powerful Clan in the forest," snapped Snowfrost, still trying to get free, but I was the bigger cat. "Crowstar didn't want any part of it at first, but then I told him about Nightcloud and I, and I thought there might have been a chance."

I was so shocked I almost let her go. "You really were in love with him," I whispered, "but you chose power over your love."

"Crowstar agreed after that," replied Snowfrost, ignoring me. "Nightcloud told me that he had an apprentice who was a descendant of Ravenfur, and I thought that that she-cat, Mistypaw, was the only descendant, so…I had her eliminated."

"Why do you want Ravenfur's kits destroyed?" I demanded.

Snowfrost narrowed her eyes menacingly and didn't answer. At that moment, the WindClan invaders who had come into ThunderClan territory were being chased away, with several of my cats right behind them. I jumped aside and let Snowfrost go; the cats were going to claw me anyway if I didn't.

Barkstorm stopped in front of me, panting and bleeding slightly. "What happened?" he asked.

"What were you doing with that warrior?" inquired Fangmouth, looking very excited about his first battle as a warrior.

"I…I was fighting her," I lied. "I need to get to camp." I started to run, but then realized how exhausted I was from all the running I had already done. I allowed my warriors to take me back to camp, realizing that there was no need to rush.

As soon as I entered the familiar camp, I got Dragonheart from the warriors' den and made her come to my leader's den.

"What's this about?" she asked curiously.

I took a deep breath and mewed, "Flamestorm's back."

Dragonheart's tail bristled out and her fangs were bared. "Back? How? I killed her!"

"I know you did. But…" I told her about the dreams she had given everyone, and about Iciclestar and Nightcloud. When I was finished, she did look pretty stumped.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" she asked finally.

"Because it was my problem," I replied. "Flamestorm wanted revenge on me because I didn't die when she killed me."

"So what about the Snowfrost thing? Why did she want a descendant of Ravenfur?"

I shook my head, confused. "I have no idea." An idea suddenly occurred to me. "There's another cat I can talk to," I realized, and padded hurriedly out of the den, almost forgetting about Dragonheart.

I was looking for Dovekit. As soon as I headed toward the nursery, the little white she-cat was coming out, her green eyes already focused on me. I rushed up to her. "Dovekit!" I whispered. "Do you –"

"She wants him dead because the descendants of the five cats who were apprentices during Firestar's time as an apprentice are the ones who will defeat Flamestorm if Glacierstar falls," mewed Dovekit, and padded away, as though nothing had happened.

* * *

That chapter was kind of sad…poor Mistypaw… 


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

I spent a lot of time thinking in my den. The descendants of the five cats who were apprentices during Firestar's time as an apprentice…who would that be? I realized that I had heard an old tale about Firestar's mission to ShadowClan to recover some kits…I had heard about Graypaw and Ravenpaw, then also of Dustpaw and Sandpaw.

So, those were the five. Firestar, Graystar, Ravenfur, Dustpelt, and Sandstorm. Now, what were their youngest descendants?

Firestar and Sandstorm had kits, Squirreltail and Leafstorm, and neither of them had any kits, so it would have to be Squirreltail, because Leafstorm was a medicine cat… As for Graystar, he and a cat named Silverstream had had Feathertail and Stormfur, and Feathertail's daughter was Streamtail, but there was still a chance that she had siblings.

And Dustpelt…Spiderpelt was his son, and my mate. Our kits were Ashenwind, Spiraltail, and Nightcloud. Then Spiraltail had had Blizzardkit and Dovekit, so one of them would be chosen. Then, of course, Ravenfur's kits – or, kit, now – Ebonypaw. He should be a warrior soon, I realized. It might help him take his mind off Mistypaw.

The dark-pelted apprentice hadn't done much since his sister's death, and since Nightcloud wasn't seeing Snowfrost anymore for very obvious reasons, Ebonypaw's mentor was back. But Ravenfur's son didn't seem to want to do any training – he'd be staring into space every time Nightcloud gave him an order, and never really tried when he actually did something. I decided to give him a bit of time off from his training to recover from Mistypaw's death, but I still wondered if that was enough.

I watched him from outside my den. Ebonypaw just returned from hunting, dropping a fair amount of prey into the fresh-kill pile. Judging by the way Nightcloud was surprised by his return, Ebonypaw hadn't been told to go hunting. I sighed and went back to my thoughts.

But Dovekit had also said 'If Glacierstar falls.' That was what had me really worried. Still, she had said 'if.' I was really hoping that I didn't take the if.

However, there was nothing I could do about Flamestorm until she decided to show herself. I had to tend to the Clan like I would have if I wasn't in this sort of tragedy. I padded outside my den and watched the apprentices play fight.

"Ha! Got you!" cried Creampaw.

He pinned Glitterpaw down hard with his wide white paws. His sister hissed playfully and batted him off with her back legs, and leaped upon Creampaw's neck.

"No, you don't," meowed Glitterpaw in his ear.

The white tom growled and bowled her over. Ebonypaw was watching nearby with empty amber eyes, and Creekpaw and Rosepaw were preparing to play in the den.

It suddenly occurred to me that Creampaw and Glitterpaw had not made their trip to the Moonstone yet. Ebonypaw had already gone about a moon ago, and Rosepaw and Creekpaw were too young to make the journey. It was very near time, I realized. I'd take Powderstripe with me because she was Glitterpaw's mentor, and then take the two apprentices to the Moonstone.

So I padded over to them. The four apprentices stopped play fighting very quickly and bowed their heads in deepest respect. Ebonypaw didn't move.

"Good day, apprentices," I greeted, and turned toward the cats I wished to speak with. "Creampaw, Glitterpaw. It is high time you make your apprentice trip to the Moonstone."

Two pairs of amber eyes stared at each other in wide-eyed astonishment, and both cats sat up a little taller. "Really, Glacierstar?" squeaked Creampaw.

I purred in amusement. "Of course. And you two," I added to Creekpaw and Rosepaw, "you are much too young. Your time will come when you get older."

Creekpaw nodded in understanding, but Rosepaw said nothing. Her blue-gray pelted sister gave her a flick from her tail on the shoulder, trying to get her to be polite, but Rosepaw merely stared at me with angry blue eyes. Was she still angry about the whole Petalstripe deal? I almost rolled my eyes.

"Anyway, I will get Powderstripe to accompany us, and you two get some herbs from Leafstorm," I ordered the two young apprentices.

Glitterpaw bounded away in excitement, but Creampaw stayed next to me. "What about Ebonypaw?" he asked.

The dark-pelted tom barely looked up as his name was mentioned.

"Ebonypaw has already made his trip to the Moonstone," I replied. "Hurry up, Creampaw. We're leaving awfully soon."

He nodded, dipped his head respectfully, and padded away after his sister. I watched him go, and walked over to Ebonypaw under the apprentices' den. I nudged him with a flick of my tail.

"Ebonypaw," I murmured in a quiet voice, "don't be so down. After all, you will be made into a warrior soon."

He looked up with an actual interest. "A warrior?"

"Yes, a warrior. I'll hold your ceremony as soon as I get back, in fact."

"A warrior…" Ebonypaw's amber eyes clouded and I knew he was remembering what Mistypaw's last words had been. He nodded slightly to me – the first hint he had ever given that I existed since Mistypaw died – and went to sit by his sister's grave.

* * *

I headed toward the medicine cat's den last after Creampaw and Glitterpaw were done eating their herbs. Powderstripe was in there, munching on a rolled-up leaf with an…interesting expression on her face. I purred at the sight.

"Tastes good, doesn't it?" I mewed.

Powderstripe merely grunted as she swallowed the rest of the herbs. "I'll never get used to those things," the white she-cat with gray patches grumbled.

"I'll take it you'll want some too, Glacierstar." It was Leafstorm, just entering from further inside the den.

I nodded. "Yes, please."

"Blizzardkit!" called the medicine cat. The little gray tom came rushing outside. He was about four moons old by now. He stopped in front of Leafstorm, blue eyes wide.

"Yes?" he mewed politely.

"Traveling herbs for Glacierstar, Blizzardkit. Just do what you for the others for Glacierstar, okay?"

Blizzardkit nodded excitedly and bounded off into the darker part of the den. I almost mentioned that I did not feel comfortable having a kit get the herbs for me, but if Leafstorm trusted him, then I supposed I should as well. Blizzardkit was certainly going to be a medicine cat.

A moment later, Dovekit's brother reappeared, swishing his tail happily. He dropped the little package in front of me and blinked.

"How's that?" he mewed.

Leafstorm purred. "Very, very good, Blizzardkit!"

As I munched on the disgusting-tasting herbs, Spiraltail stuck her head inside the den. "Blizzardkit," she called to her son. "Feeding time."

"All right!" cried the young gray kit, and charged out of the den. "Bye, Leafstorm, Glacierstar!" he added, just before disappearing.

I finished my herbs and looked up. Leafstorm was staring after him with a thoughtful, almost sad expression. "I never knew who his father was," she mewed.

I stared at her in surprise. That thought had never even come to me, to be honest. Just who was Spiraltail's mate? "I'll ask Spiraltail when I return, perhaps," I told her.

"There might be a reason why she doesn't want anyone to know," mewed Leafstorm.

I shrugged. "She'll tell me."

I said good-bye to Leafstorm before padding outside to meet Powderstripe, Creampaw, and Glitterpaw, who were all waiting patiently for me. I called over Dragonheart with a flick of my tail.

"You're in charge of the camp," I told her. "Guard it well."

The tricolor she-cat nodded. "I shall, Glacierstar."

"Right," I meowed, and looked at the cats that were coming with me. "Let's go."

The four of us traveled through the forest at a steady pace. Even though Creampaw seemed awfully excited, he wasn't going ahead like he usually was. My senses had become more alert since the Snowfrost episode, and I hoped that her Clan wouldn't attack while the leader was out of the camp.

"This is great!" cried Creampaw as we trotted through the forest. "The Moonstone, the Gathering…when are we going to be made warriors?"

I shared a glance with Powderstripe before replying. "When you are ready," I mewed.

"You don't get to be made a warrior just because you've been an apprentice for a long time," added Powderstripe. "You earn it."

"I think we've earned it," commented Glitterpaw as she leapt over a fallen log.

I decided to change the subject. These two apprentices would be warriors in about a moon – but I wasn't about to tell them that. "Remember, apprentices," I told them, "this will be your first time crossing the Thunderpath. Be on your guard."

Glitterpaw and Creampaw exchanged a glance and I knew I had just killed their excitement and confidence. They'll do fine, I thought. After all, Creampaw was _my_ apprentice.

I decided to completely avoid WindClan territory and walk along the edge of ShadowClan territory. I didn't want the others knowing about what had happened with Snowfrost and Nightcloud. We walked along the river as it thinned out toward ShadowClan territory, and stopped by the monstrous road when it disappeared below it.

"Right," I mewed, stepping forward. "I'll go first, and the apprentices follow after me."

I walked onto the edge of the Thunderpath and listened for an oncoming monster. Everything was totally peaceful, so I hurried forward, claws scraping the disgusting material of the Thunderpath, and stopped on the edge of ShadowClan territory.

I called to the apprentices. "Creampaw, you next," I ordered.

Creampaw exchanged a nervous glance with his sister before heading to the edge where I had stood moments before. A huge monster, bigger than most, roared past, and Creampaw hid in the bushes with his ears flattened in fear. When it was past, he rose slowly, and darted across. The Thunderpath was clear; he'd done it perfectly.

"Your turn, Glitterpaw!" cried Creampaw, his confidence returned.

His white-pelted sister stepped forward, her eyes narrowed in concentration. Powderstripe, her mentor, was murmuring to her. Glitterpaw nodded and placed a single paw on the road, glanced down the Thunderpath, and quickly bolted across. Powderstripe followed just as easily.

"Very good, you two," I told Glitterpaw and Creampaw as they panted next to me. "But remember, there's still one more Thunderpath to cross before we get to Highstones."

The others followed me through the edge of ShadowClan territory. Whenever a monster came along the Thunderpath, we crouched low to the ground, hiding in the bushes, to keep the grit from spraying on our pelts. I began to wonder what I'd find when I shared dreams with StarClan – would I really see my ancestors or would I see Flamestorm?

"And here's the second one," I told the other three as I paused. A monster blew past me. As soon as it was gone, I raced across and stopped when I felt the rocky terrain of Highstones under my feet. "Come on, Creampaw."

Creampaw followed just as easily as the first time. When Glitterpaw went, a monster picked up speed with amazing swiftness and charged at her – I yowled a warning and dug my claws into the earth as Creampaw gasped – but Glitterpaw hug to the ground, and the monster roared over her. She joined us on the other side, her tail fluffed out and her eyes wide. Powderstripe hurried over to us and gave Glitterpaw a quick lick.

"That was so scary," mumbled Glitterpaw.

I let her rest for a few moments before we trudged on, toward the Highstones. The apprentices were amazed at what they saw: a huge, cliffy hole in the ground leading to a dark passageway. I had been here about five moons ago to receive my nine lives. Eight now, I thought bitterly.

"If you want to hunt, do it now," I told the other three cats. "I can't, if I want to share dreams with StarClan."

"I'm starving," announced Creampaw, and took his sister to the patch of trees behind the cliffs. Powderstripe nodded to me before heading after them to assess their hunting skills.

A few moments later, all three cats returned, having caught a decent catch. I watched them eat the fresh-kill almost enviously, and wished that the old traditions didn't apply to cats that had formerly been Twolegs.

"It's time," I mewed suddenly, standing up. The moon was very high in the sky. "Follow me."

We went around the cliff and near the Thunderpath, walking slowly onto the slanting ground that led into Mothermouth. The apprentices' claws were unsheathed as they slid across the stone. I walked calmly toward the cave and waited for them.

"Do we get to go inside?" asked Glitterpaw eagerly.

"Do we get to see the Moonstone?" inquired Creampaw.

"Yes," I replied. "Powderstripe, would you mind guarding the entrance?"

Powderstripe hesitated, and then nodded reluctantly. "I will, Glacierstar," she mewed.

"Good." I glanced toward the other two cats. "Let's go, apprentices."

Creampaw and Glitterpaw followed me into the dark cave. It was so dark that I could barely see where I was going. I had to memorize the route that Leafstorm had told me about to get through.

"It's dark," complained Creampaw. I heard a sudden thud. "Ouch!"

"He tripped," explained Glitterpaw quietly. "Come on, Creampaw, you clumsy badger. We have to keep going."

Creampaw grunted as he hauled himself to his paws. The apprentices followed my scent through the winding trails of Mothermouth. I stopped suddenly when I saw a blinding white light ahead.

"Here we are," I announced. I climbed up the ledge and pulled the apprentices up after me, who stared at the Moonstone in wide-eyed amazement.

The Moonstone was about as big as a full-grown cat. From the top of the cave, there was a hole. I could see the moon perfectly above it, shining light on the stone beneath us. I swallowed nervously as I approached it, and faced the two apprentices.

"Don't make any noises as I am sharing dreams," I told them. Creampaw and Glitterpaw nodded.

I pressed my nose against the cold, cold rock, and closed my eyes. An incredible wave of sleep came over me. I blinked slowly and squinted; I was standing next to Bramblestar.

"Bramblestar!" I cried in shock.

I glanced around me. Firestar and Sandstorm were sitting nearby, with Cloudtail and Brightheart close to them. I saw Cinderpelt and an old gray she-cat I didn't recognize, as well as Ravenfur. Sitting next to him was his daughter: Mistypaw.

I gasped and walked toward her. The light gray she-cat stared at me with happy green eyes. "Mistypaw," I whispered, "I'm so sorry about what happened to you…"

"It turned out for the best," she whispered. "Ebonypaw will be made an excellent warrior. That is all I wanted." Mistypaw closed her eyes briefly. "Choose the best name for him."

"I will," I promised. I glanced around the clearing. "Have you heard anything about the threat of Flamestorm?"

"Of course we have." It was Graystar, his long gray fur sweeping in the slight breeze. "Flamestorm will be stopped, Glacierstar. But when, we cannot say."

"Could you tell me who the descendants are?" I asked them.

Firestar answered me. "Squrreltail, Dovekit, Ebonypaw, and Elmheart," he replied.

"Elmheart?" I blinked in confusion.

"Streamtail's brother," explained Graystar. "Feathertail's son."

At least now I knew those four cats. I couldn't believe that it had come to a cat as young as Dovekit, but she would be made an apprentice soon.

"Glacierstar." It was Mistypaw again. I stared down at her. "Be prepared to meet a friend you thought was gone. But beware of the disloyalty the cat will bring."

There was a sudden flash, and StarClan disappeared. I was staring into the incredible brightness of the Moonstone. I repeated Mistypaw's words over and over in my head again. She had said a 'friend' – so I figured it couldn't be too bad. But how had this cat been disloyal?

"Creampaw? Glitterpaw?" I whispered. The two cats jumped in surprise.

"Glacierstar!" exclaimed Creampaw. "What did you –" Glitterpaw nudged him angrily and hissed something in his ear.

I got to my feet, purring in amusement. "You will know when you become Clan leader," I told them. "Come on. I want to return to the camp."

We left the Moonstone behind and greeted Powderstripe at the front of the cave. Just as we were preparing to leave, I noticed a small group of cats across the Thunderpath to the left.

"ShadowClan," I whispered. "We're going to have to go across WindClan territory." I was not pleased at all to do that. If we ran into any WindClan warriors…

I waited at the larger Thunderpath for any monsters. When all was peaceful, I raced hurriedly across. I was slower than I had been the first time due to exhaustion. At that moment, I was very tired. I was relieved that the other three cats made it across the Thunderpath easily.

"Right," I panted. "Let's go."

"Could we rest first?" asked Glitterpaw suddenly. I was surprised; normally she never would have admitted that she was tired. Powderstripe gave her a look.

I hesitated. I was very tempted to keep going, but the others seemed tired. I had scraped a pad on a sharp stone in Mothermouth, as well. So I nodded and mewed, "All right. We'll rest over there." I nodded toward the farm – formerly known as Barley's farm so many seasons ago, when I was just an apprentice.

Glitterpaw's face lit up. "Thank you, Glacierstar!" she exclaimed.

I nodded slightly. "We won't stay long, however," I added. "There are always plenty of mice on the farm, so we'll be able to hunt quite a bit."

We padded silently across WindClan territory until the huge, red, Twoleg nest came into view. The four of us entered the _barn_, I remembered it being, and plopped down on the hay, too exhausted to move any further.

"Who's there?"

A she-cat's voice made us jump; Powderstripe sprang forward, swishing her tail in a threatening way. "Show yourself!" she snapped.

There was a scuffle, and a terrified-looking she-cat came into view. Her long white pelt was fluffed up in fear, and her green eyes were darting from Powderstripe, to me, to the two apprentices. She was relatively plump. Powderstripe growled and trudged forward.

"Get away from here, kittypet," she snarled.

The she-cat's eyes locked on me, and she froze. "Glacierclaw?" she whispered.

I stared at her in shock. "Who are you?" I demanded. "I don't recognize you."

"It's me…" She pushed past Powderstripe. "Whiteflower!"

* * *

I let out a yowl of pure happiness and rushed to greet my old friend. "Whiteflower, I can't believe it's you!"

"You've changed a lot, Glacierclaw," she commented.

"Actually, it's Glacierstar, now," I told her.

Whiteflower stared. "You're leader! Oh, great StarClan, that is great news! But what happened to Bramblestar?"

"He was killed by Robinstar." This time Powderstripe answered, sidling up next to me. "It is good to see you again, friend. How did you escape the Twolegs?"  
Whiteflower hesitated. "I am not so keen to tell the story," she mewed.

"Please tell us." Creampaw and Glitterpaw stepped forward.

"Oh, this cannot be Creampaw!" exclaimed Whiteflower, giving his forehead a lick.

"He just went to the Moonstone," I explained. "As did Glitterpaw."

"So what's the story?" asked Creampaw's sister.

Whiteflower lay down in the hay and began to tell her story. I sat next to her. "Well, when the Twolegs captured me, I was sure that I'd never see ThunderClan again. The Twolegs brought me home, where a…a tom was waiting for me." She glanced at her belly.

I gasped in pure shock. "You're…you're pregnant," I whispered.

"A kittypet?" demanded Powderstripe.

"Yes…his name was Mikey. I told him stories about my time in ThunderClan, and he felt sorry for me for being taken away from my home. We have been planning for my escape ever since. I was very surprised when I spotted the Highstones not all that far away, but I wasn't sure if I was ready for the journey."

Whiteflower glanced around us. "Mikey helped me escape from the Twoleg nest, and I have been traveling for about two days now. I am resting here, and I never expected to meet you four."

I remembered Mistypaw's prophecy. So this was the disloyalty she was talking about, I thought. Whiteflower's mate is a kittypet…

"Will you take me home?" asked Whiteflower with a touch of fear. "Even though my kits have kittypet blood?"

I hesitated. Then, "Yes, Whiteflower. Of course. We'd take you back no matter what."

Powderstripe glanced at me in surprise. She wasn't so keen on taking this she-cat back to her home. But Whiteflower was my friend. She had been since I had been brought to the Clan as a six-moon-old kit.

"Right," I mewed. "We'll rest here, and then keep going to ThunderClan territory."

"You don't have to," mewed Whiteflower, climbing to her feet. "We can keep going. I want to see the camp again."

I nodded and got up as well. "Okay, if that's what you want," I meowed.

"Creampaw, Glitterpaw, escort Whiteflower out of here," ordered Powderstripe. Both apprentices nodded and stepped on either side of the white she-cat, leading her out of the barn.

Powderstripe turned to me. "Glacierstar, are you sure that you want this…_kittypet_ to be back in the Clan? She might not make it, having been used to a comfortable life."

I purred. "Whiteflower has been with the Clan longer than she has with the Twolegs," I pointed out. "I'm sure she'll be fine."

"But her kits." Powderstripe's amber eyes were worried. "How will the Clan react to her having kits?"

I hesitated. "We'll try to keep it a secret from the other Clans," I mewed. "There has been a number of kittypets, loners, and rogues in ThunderClan. We have to break that tradition."

Powderstripe nodded, not completely convinced.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm home," whispered Whiteflower as we pushed through the entrance to the camp.

At once, the entire Clan stared at her in suspicion and shock. But then Branchtail, a light brown tom with white stripes, rushed forward, crying, "Whiteflower's back!" It was not surprising that he recognized Whiteflower first; Branchtail was Whiteflower's son. And soon he'd have more siblings, I thought bitterly. How are we going to cover this up?

Squirreltail rushed forward in happiness. "Whiteflower, I am so glad to see you," she murmured.

"Welcome back, Whiteflower." It was Spiderpelt, giving her a lick on the forehead.

I leapt upon the Highrock and didn't bother summoning the cats; they were all outside their dens because of Whiteflower's arrival. "Today, an old friend has come back to ThunderClan," I announced. "Whiteflower has returned."

The cats burst into a chorus of "Whiteflower! Whiteflower!" like a new warrior had been named. I continued when the noise had died down.

"I also think that you should hear the story she has to tell," I added.

Whiteflower glanced up at me with nervous green eyes, and leapt upon the Highrock awkwardly. She sat down next to me and cleared her throat. I was surprised that she told the story of her and Mikey without any embarrassment. When she was finished, the Clan was completely stumped. Especially Shrewclaw, her old mate, from his position at the elder's den.

"You should not have come back at all!" he yowled.

Whiteflower looked hurt. "A Twoleg nest is not my home, Shrewclaw. I never could have been happy there."

"But these kits," burst out Graytail, "they are half-kittypet! No Clan would ever respect them."

"We will keep it a secret from the other Clans," I mewed. "At Gatherings, do not tell anyone about Whiteflower's kits – only that she has returned." I glanced at Whiteflower. "Would you like to move into the nursery?"

She nodded. "Yes, that would be best," she replied, and leapt down from the Highrock. I noticed that the Clan edged away from her as she moved toward the nursery.

I hesitated before beginning a special ceremony. "To add to that," I meowed, "an apprentice is very ready to receive his warrior name. Nightcloud." I glanced down at my dark-pelted son. "Do you believe that your apprentice is ready to be a warrior?"

Nightcloud nodded excitedly. "Yes, I do," he replied.

I flicked my tail at Ebonypaw. The black apprentice rose to his paws and padded to sit next to me on the Highrock. His fur had been groomed sleekly for the ceremony. I raised my head to Silverpelt and yowled,

"I, Glacierstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn."

I stared down at the calm apprentice and mewed, "Ebonypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"

Ebonypaw bowed his head slightly. I knew he was remembering Mistypaw. "I do," he whispered.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Ebonypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Ebonyclaw. StarClan honors your strength and confidence, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

I rested my head on Ebonyclaw's as he licked my shoulder. The whole camp changed Ebonyclaw's new name.

"Ebonyclaw! Ebonyclaw!"

The new warrior bowed his head and spoke. "Glacierstar, I know I am breaking a tradition, but I have a…request."

I stared at him. "Yes, what is it?"

"I would like you to give a warrior name to…to the cat who should have been made a warrior at this time."

Mistypaw. I glanced at her grave. Ebonyclaw wanted me to give Mistypaw her warrior name. It was not unheard of; just a little late. It was supposed to have been done as soon as she died. But I wasn't about to say no to Ebonyclaw, so I leapt down from the Highrock and sat behind Mistypaw's grave.

"I am calling upon StarClan to look down at this young cat's grave. She would have been made a warrior on this day. She would have promised to uphold the warrior code and protect and defend this Clan, at the cost of her own life. She would have been proud to have her name changed – Mistypaw, you will be known as Mistycloud. StarClan honors your determination and loyalty, and we welcome you as a new warrior of ThunderClan."

I bent down and touched my nose to Mistycloud's grave. I could almost see her excited amber eyes staring at me. Ebonyclaw purred loudly and sat next to the grave. I knew he would spend his vigil right there.

"Mistycloud! Mistycloud!" The Clan cheered loudly for this new warrior. Ebonyclaw looked happier than he had been in days.

I was just about to go rest in my den when I remembered a conversation with Leafstorm I had had what seemed like so long ago. I rushed up to Spiraltail as she herded her to kits back into the nursery. "Spiraltail? Can I talk to you?"

The white she-cat nodded. "Just wait in there next to Morningcloud, kits," she told Dovekit and Blizzardkit. "I won't be long." Spiraltail sidled up next to me. "Yes, Glacierstar? What is it?"

I took a deep breath before asking, "Who was your mate?"

Spiraltail hesitated. "I was wondering when you'd ask me that," she admitted. "All right, if you must know: it was Bramblestar."

* * *

Whoa! I can't believe I wrote that. XD Spiraltail and Bramblestar? And I know that that wasn't the appropriate ceremony for Mistycloud, but oh well. I don't have the fifth book with me. This was a pretty long chapter, too...

Please leave a review!


	10. Chapter Ten

I know I'm making a bunch of cats warriors in this fic, but they really need to be made warriors. It's part of the whole plot. And if this chapter seems a little rushed, I'm sorry.

* * *

Chapter Ten

"And then, Snowfrost attacked Mistypaw, Skyfoot's apprentice – or, now, it'll be Mistycloud – on her own territory. Nightcloud had no idea that it was she who had done it. Mistycloud died soon after that, but her brother, Ebonyclaw, requested that she received her warrior name."

I was talking to Iciclestar. We were sitting next to the river, rather close to Fourtress. Both of us were sure that none of the other Clans would notice us around there. Iciclestar needed to hear what Flamestorm had done so far.

"Anyway, when Mistycloud died, Nightcloud went to tell Snowfrost about it. Snowfrost believed that Mistycloud had been his apprentice, but she wasn't – Ebonyclaw was. So Snowfrost was shocked to learn that there Ravenfur had _two_ kits, not one. She ordered her warriors for Nightcloud to be killed – but I was there, and I pulled him out of it." I tried not to say it with a swagger.

"Wow." Iciclestar's amber eyes blinked. "So why did Snowfrost want both of Ravenfur's kits?"

"Because there's a prophecy." I repeated the whole thing to her once again. It was getting tiresome to keep saying it. "The descendants of the five cats who were apprentices during Firestar's time as an apprentice are the ones who will defeat Flamestorm if Glacierstar falls." I shivered. "Dovekit told me. I really hope that the last part doesn't come true. I suppose Snowfrost thought that Ravenfur's kits would be the easiest to destroy, as her mate had one of them as an apprentice."

Iciclestar nodded. "I get it." She swished her silver tail in anticipation. "That Flamestorm sure knows how to manipulate Clans to do things."

I sighed. "Yes, she does. That might be what Flamestorm's planning to do – manipulate the other Clans into destroying me."

"Maybe we should warn the other Clans about her."

"No!" I exclaimed. "That would mean explaining that I was once a Twoleg. I can't do that – the other Clans would defy me and not care if Flamestorm took me down."

"Right." Iciclestar twitched her ears. "Then maybe the only thing we can do is wait for Flamestorm's next move."

"Yes, that's what I was thinking," was my response. "We should get back to our Clans now."

"Yes," answered Iciclestar. She climbed to her feet headed toward RiverClan territory. Just as she was about to swim gracefully across the river, she turned back toward me. "Glacierstar, ever since I betrayed Flamestorm, I've been having horrible dreams."

I sighed bitterly. "I knew she'd do something like that."

"Yes…every night I dream about myself – dying. Nine times, I die, each of them a different way." She shuddered. Every leader's worst fear – dying nine times. "The last one always seems to end with me falling into flames."

"Ignore them," I told her. "She wants you to be scared."

"Okay," she replied. "Good night, Glacierstar."

"Yeah…see you, Iciclestar."

The two of us headed back to camp, in two different directions.

* * *

"Glacierstar! Where have you _been?_"

It was Dragonheart. The black, gray, and ginger she-cat was hurrying toward me as I returned, her tail fluffed out in anxiety.

"I sent patrols in every direction to look for you," she sniffed. "Where were you?"

I shrugged. "Hunting. I thought we could use the fresh-kill." I pushed past her. "I want to see Spiraltail's kits."

I was feeling grumpy and nervous because of what Flamestorm had promised. Iciclestar's dreams didn't help much either. I entered the warm and sunlit nursery, where four queens and seven kits were staying inside. When Whiteflower spotted me, she let out a huge purr.

"Glacierstar!" she exclaimed. "How are you?"

I dipped my head. "Fine, Whiteflower," I replied. "Enjoying the nursery?"

She glanced at her belly. Her kits had not yet been born. "Yes, it's much better than that dirty Twoleg home."

"I imagine it must be." It was Sprucecloud from the back of the den. She and Morningcloud were the most resentful toward the she-cat's return. Fortunately, Whiteflower never picked up any of it.

I spotted Spiraltail near the back and padded over to her. Dovekit and Blizzardkit were having a huge playfight. I poked Dovekit gently with my paw, hoping to get a prophecy or something from StarClan out of her.

But I got nothing. Dovekit continued to wrestle with Blizzardkit on the ground, rolling down the slight slope. Spiraltail purred loudly at the sight of them. I had been incredibly stunned when she had told me that her mate was Bramblestar – a secret she had kept hidden for so many moons. I figured out that she didn't want to tell anyone because she didn't want her kits to appear special because their father was the old leader of ThunderClan – or perhaps it was because Bramblestar was Tigerstar's son, and they carried on the generation.

"Glacierstar," mewed Spiraltail, "something has been bothering me. I know who Blizzardkit's mentor will be…Leafstorm, of course…but what about Dovekit? I was thinking Skyfoot or Fangmouth, maybe Squirreltail, she hasn't had an apprentice in a while…but who will it be?"

I thought hard about her question. I wasn't sure I wanted StarClan's link to be mentored by an ordinary warrior. So I told her,

"I'll mentor her."

Spiraltail stared at me in complete shock. "But…Glacierstar…you already have Creampaw."

"Creampaw will be a warrior very soon. I'll make him a warrior in a few days, in fact," I added.

My daughter stared at me curiously. "You've taken a liking to Dovekit," she mewed. "Why are you always trying to talk to her?"

I hesitated, wondering what to say next. I couldn't exactly tell her that her daughter was the link to StarClan. So I just mewed, "I don't know, she's just a good little she-cat." I shrugged.

Spiraltail grunted in agreement and watched her two kits playfight. Morningcloud's kits, Pinekit and Rustkit, were about to join in. They were half a moon younger than Spiraltail's.

Right, I thought, gazing at all four of them happily play fight, I'll mentor Dovekit.

* * *

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join me beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting."

The cats of the Clan circled below me for Creampaw and Glitterpaw's warrior ceremony. I felt rather nervous because I wasn't exactly sure if Creampaw was ready to accept his warrior name – but I needed to make room for Dovekit.

But then, what about when we had to fight the foxes? I thought as I flicked my tail at the two apprentices. Their white pelts were groomed sleekly for their ceremony. I purred loudly and looked up at Silverpelt.

"I, Glacierstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of their noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn."

I looked down at the tom and the she-cat and meowed in a loud, clear voice, "Glitterpaw, Creampaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"

"I do." Glitterpaw's mew, quiet and anxious.

"I do." Creampaw spoke louder with excitement.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Glitterpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Glitterpool. StarClan honors your bravery and justice, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

I had spent a long time thinking about Glitterpool's warrior name. I couldn't decide the best one for her, until I heard an old Firestar tale about a cat named Graypool. To honor her memory, I would name Powderstripe's apprentice after her.

I turned to Creampaw, my apprentice, after completing the ritual with Glitterpool. "Creampaw, from this moment on you will be known as Creamwhisker. StarClan honors your confidence and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

Creamwhisker purred loudly and bent to let me rest my head on his. I felt incredibly proud of him. This white-pelted tom had probably been the best apprentice I'd ever had. I almost felt sad that it was going to end, that I'd never be able to train him once again.

"Glitterpool! Creamwhisker! Glitterpool! Creamwhisker!" the Clan chanted, over and over.

Ebonyclaw rose to his feet to congratulate them as I leapt down from the Highrock and watched from a few feet away.

"Good names," he told them, swishing his dark tail around his paws. "I'm glad that you're warriors now."

Creamwhisker dipped his head and Glitterpool purred loudly. Fangmouth was just coming over to repeat Ebonyclaw's words to his old den mates.

As I headed over to my den to fall asleep, I noticed a pair of green eyes watching me from the nursery. It was Dovekit. Awfully creepy, the way she was staring at me. I knew that she was telling me that something would happen, soon.

I was both eager and nervous about the next Gathering half a moon after my apprentices' warrior ceremony. Eager, because I'd be able to see if Flamestorm had messed anything up. Nervous, because I wasn't sure if I'd be able to handle it.

I chose the cats to go to the Gathering very carefully, leaving nearly half of the Clan behind to guard it. I made sure that Ebonyclaw, Creamwhisker, and Glitterpool were included. I knew that all three of them were very excited about their first Gathering as a warrior.

Bringing Dragonheart and a few other cats with me, I brought them all to the Gathering. The remaining two apprentices, Creekpaw and Rosepaw, were coming as well. Before we had left, Spiraltail pulled me aside.

"Glacierstar, I think that Dovekit is ready."

My heart leapt. This was exactly what I wanted to hear. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. She seems perfectly capable, and she is definitely six moons. You'll be mentoring her?"

I nodded. "That's right. And Leafstorm will mentor Blizzardkit."

I was glad that Leafstorm was getting an apprentice. She was finally able to teach what her mentor, Cinderpelt, had taught her so many moons ago. I hoped that Blizzardkit would be a worthy apprentice.

"Look! There's Talonstar, ShadowClan's leader."

Rosepaw and Creekpaw were standing on the edge of the slope, staring down at the many cats beneath the four trees. They were pointing out the fiercest warriors and the leaders of Clans. As I too stared at Talonstar, I could see that he looked unusually thin. All the ShadowClan cats that I noticed looked like that. With a lurch I wondered if something had happened to them – or if Flamestorm had something to do with it.

I padded down the slope, flicking my tail for my Clan to follow me. They rushed to meet their friends in different Clans. I headed toward Iciclestar.

"Hello," I greeted, about to ask about Flamestorm.

"What's wrong with the ShadowClan cats?" she interrupted. "They look so gaunt."

"I know," I agreed. "I noticed that. You don't think…?" I let it hang, not wanting any cats to overhear.

The silver-pelted she-cat shrugged. "She might take advantage of it."

"This might be her third plan," I whispered. "Two of them have failed, but she's never mentioned it in my dreams. Maybe she's given up." I let out a purr of amusement but froze when Crowstar stalked past me, glaring.

He didn't say anything to me, but when he whispered something to his deputy, Stonyfoot, the other gray tom just gave me an uncomfortable look. I looked down at my paws. Stonyfoot still respected me, even after he had tried to kill Nightcloud. I wanted to say something to him, but a loud yowl from Talonstar made Iciclestar and I hurry to the top of the Great Rock. The huge gray tom wanted to speak quickly.

"Cats of all Clans!" yowled Talonstar. "ShadowClan requires your assistance."

I glanced nervously at Iciclestar and Dragonheart.

"Our Clan was recently hit with a very powerful sickness, and with the conbination of Twolegs scaring away all of our prey, ShadowClan is doing horribly."

I didn't believe him. It was the middle of greenleaf – surely there were no sicknesses then.

To my surprise, Talonstar turned toward Crowstar. "Crowstar, I have seen how well your Clan is doing. We must ask you to let us share your hunting grounds."

To my even greater surprise, Crowstar considered it. Then he mewed, "It would hardly feed all of us, both our Clans."

"I'm sure you have enough," insisted Talonstar.

WindClan yowled out outraged cries. "Never!" It was Slatefoot, a light gray tom. "Place one pawstep on our territory, and we'll rip you to shreds!" The rest of the Clan yowled their agreement.

Unexpectedly, Crowstar turned to me. "I'll need ThunderClan's help," he mewed. "Perhaps you could spare about a fifth of your usual weekly fresh-kill?"

I hissed. "No."

The three of us debated. Iciclestar remained silent, watching. I think she was quite glad that RiverClan was left out of it. By the time the Gathering was over, nothing had been decided, and the Clans left in an irritable state.

Crowstar sidled up next to me, his teeth bared. "You'd better give in," he hissed. "Otherwise, I'll tell all the Clans about your son."

I froze. Nightcloud! Angrily, I snarled, "Snowfrost was his mate!"

"Yes, but my Clan knows about it," he replied, and with a purr of laughter, followed his Clan back to WindClan territory.

He was right. ThunderClan had no idea about Nightcloud and Snowfrost. I realized with a jolt what Flamestorm was trying to do – unite WindClan and ShadowClan against me. She knew that she had no chance with RiverClan, as their leader was my ally.

I led my Clan back to camp in very low spirits. Well, I thought dryly, I guess Flamestorm still hasn't given up. But how is she able to do things like that? Perhaps when Dragonheart killed her, she hadn't killed her…properly. Like that made any sense.

I almost forgot Dovekit and Blizzardkit's apprentice ceremony when I returned to camp, and stumbled through the words.

"Blizzardkit, your mentor will be Leafstorm." I watched as mentor and apprentice touched noses. "You are ready to learn the ways of a medicine cat, and until you have earned your warrior name, you will be known as Blizzardpaw." I paused, wondering if my decision was the right one. "And I will mentor Dovekit."

Dovekit's huge green eyes widened in surprise as the Clan murmured in astonishment. I could tell that they were stunned that I'd choose another apprentice when my old one had become a warrior half a moon ago.

"Until you have earned your warrior name, you will be known as Dovepaw." I stepped down to touch noses with her as the Clan chanted the two apprentices' new names.

"_When you are in a tale you have once heard, be sure to watch the dragon._"

I realized Dovepaw was speaking to me. It sounded like a prophecy! I repeated it over and over again in my head. A tale I have once heard…_in_ a tale? That didn't really make sense. But the dragon had to be Dragonheart…

"Glacierstar." I looked up. The cat in question was standing right in front of me. "I've been thinking about what Talonstar wanted…"

Be sure to watch the dragon…for what? Would she betray me, or be in danger?

"Are you listening?" Dragonheart interrupted my thoughts. "I said, we might be able to convince Talonstar not to get help from Crowstar."

"Oh…really? When will we do this?" I was having a hard time tracking. My mind was still on Flamestorm, Dovepaw, and a prophecy.

"Tonight." Dragonheart's green eyes gleamed. "We should speak with him as soon as possible."

I hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, tonight." I didn't like the idea all that much, but Dragonheart was right – we needed to make a decision before Talonstar and Crowstar could speak together.

"Okay," I agreed. "Let's go."

* * *

"I hate these swampy ShadowClan marshes," complained Dragonheart as we trudged through the shallow water. "It gets my fur wet." She shook, spraying water all over me.

"Hey…" I protested. I sighed and shook as well. "Dragonheart, maybe, when you killed Flamestorm, you didn't do it properly."

She stared at me. "What?"

"Well, how else would Flamestorm be able to do all those things?"

Dragonheart shrugged. "Maybe it had to do with how we're sisters."

I started to answer, but froze when I spotted the tall grass rustling close by. A patrol? I thought wildly, and started to move away from it, flicking my tail at Dragonheart for her to follow me. Unfortunately, my friend was already pacing toward the grass. I wanted to call her back, but I was afraid the patrol, or whatever it was, would spot us.

I had no choice but to follow her. I walked, keeping my shoulders low and using my best stalking crouch, after Dragonheart.

But then –

A huge light, reflected by the moon, exploded in my face. I recognized the Moonstone…and Flowertail was holding it in her mouth. (a/n: They never mentioned how big the Moonstone was…)

"Hey!" roared Dragonheart. "Give that back –" In a second, she was gone. Disappeared, vanished into thin air. I ran forward, terrified.

"Dragonheart!" I screamed. Flowertail turned the stolen Moonstone on me, too, and suddenly I wasn't where I thought I was…

I jerked awake suddenly. The first thing I noticed was that my fur was damp and soggy. I wondered with a jolt if my head was below the water – but no, as I felt around with my paws, the water had somehow become shallower. I couldn't drown in it. Slowly, slowly, I rose to my feet.

I felt terrible. My whole body was aching. Then I remembered – Dragonheart. Where was she? I looked around wildly, but my best friend was no where to be found. With a sinking feeling, I remembered Dovepaw's prophecy. I hadn't been able to watch Dragonheart because she disappeared before I had a chance.

I looked around – realized that the Thunderpath wasn't there. Instead, a stretch of trees replaced it, turning into grassy moorland and swampy marshes. I was terrified. What was going on? When I looked behind me, I saw that Twolegplace was gone too. There was no trace of any Twoleg structure anywhere – the Carrionplace had disappeared, too. I wondered if this had happened to the other Clans and they were stuck back here with no Twolegs, but then I realized that there were no scent of the Clans on this territory at all. None. Like ShadowClan didn't even exist.

I needed to check on ThunderClan. Padding nervously toward the dense forest, I picked up traces of scents, and as I walked deeper in, they became stronger. At least I know there are cats here, I thought…before an explosion of blue-gray fur tackled me.

"Rahh!" I yowled in shock – this cat had taken me completely by surprise. I rolled over and dug my claws into its back, and let go of me. I watched as the small young cat launched at me again, but I simply batted it away. When it was too tired to go on any more, it collapsed on the ground in a heap.

This cat was a she-cat. Her fur was so blue-gray that it could have been blue. She was obviously an apprentice, judging by her small size. I just sat there, watching her. When she regained her strength, she leapt to her feet and snarled,

"Get off TigerClan's territory!"

"TigerClan?" I repeated blankly. "What…don't you mean…"

A tale I had once heard…of course! The time of the Great Clans! But I had always imagined that they really were big cats – lions, tigers, leopards. But they were just plain domestic cats like we were.

The apprentice sniffed uncertainly. "Are you from LeopardClan?" she demanded.

"Er…no…I'm from ThunderClan."

"What? ThunderClan?" The apprentice stared at me with a puzzled expression.

"Listen," I mewed, "have you seen a cat with a black, gray, and ginger pelt? She's my best friend."

The small apprentice hesitated. Then, "Maybe. We have just captured a prisoner who was trespassing in the clearing."

Prisoner? "What…what are you planning to do to her?"

She shrugged. "Probably kill her. Trespassers on TigerClan territory always die!"

I felt the ground sway beneath my paws. Dragonheart was going to die!

"Look." The apprentice hesitated. "If you really don't want your friend to die, then offer to help us win the war with LeopardClan."

"All right," I mewed slowly. My mind was having a hard time wrapping around all this.

"You haven't even told me your name."

I hesitated. I decided not to mention that my name had a 'star' after it, signifying that I was a Clan leader. "Glacierclaw," I replied, using my warrior name.

"I'm Reefpaw." Reefpaw stared at me with a puzzled expression. "You have a Clan name."

"Yes…we are from a…Clan far away," I told her. "Now, could we please go save Dragonheart?"

Reefpaw didn't seem to be thrilled with the idea, but she nodded. "Yes… I hope I can convince my Clan."

"What? They wouldn't listen to you?"

Again, Reefpaw hesitated. Then, "Pantherclaw, my father who is also the deputy, thinks I am worthless because I am small. Since Pantherclaw is one of the greatest warriors in the forest, the whole Clan also hates me, except for my mentor, Foxheart, and my best friend, Crystalpaw."

I felt an unexpected wave of sympathy for this poor apprentice. She did seem to be a bit weak to me, since I was able to knock her away so easily…perhaps, if I got to join this war, I'd be able to win Reefpaw her dignity.

* * *

I still think that chapter was rushed…

All right – when Glacierstar and Dragonheart are in the times of the Great Clans and all, things are going to get a little…violent. Just to warn you. For the next chapter, both Glacierstar and Ebonyclaw will narrate.

Now, please, review!


	11. Chapter Eleven

To whoever Sparkheart is…that was very sweet of you, I must say. You have pointed out the STUPIDEST THINGS IN MY F!CKING STORY! HOW CAN GLACIERSTAR BE A WEIRD NAME, YOU ASSH!LE? THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY F!CKING SENSE! SPARKHEART IS THE MOST RETARDED NAME I HAVE EVER HEARD! LIKE I KEEP SAYING, I WROTE HIS NAME AS SPIDERPELT BEFORE STARLIGHT CAME OUT! NOT ONLY THAT, BUT I'VE TOLD IN MY STORY WHY SHREWCLAW IS AN ELDER AND SPIDERPELT ISN'T, RETARD! AND IF YOU THINK MY STORY'S BAD BY JUST LOOKING AT THE ALLEGIANCES, THEN YOU AREN'T VERY SMART, ARE YOU? IT DOESN'T HELP EITHER THAT YOU'RE A COWARDLY ANONYMOUS REVIEWER AND DIDN'T EVEN LEAVE YOUR EMAIL SO I COULD REPLY, BECAUSE GUESS WHAT, I HAVE TO REPLY TO YOU IN FRONT OF ALL MY OTHER REVIEWERS! AND, YOU HAVE GIVEN ME MY FIRST F!CKING FLAME EVER! FEEL PROUD?

There you go, Sparkheart. I hope you received the reply you were anticipating.

* * *

Chapter Eleven

"Ebonyclaw? Have you seen Dragonheart?"

I looked up. It was Glitterpool, talking to me. She had just received her warrior name yesterday, and already she was acting as though she had been a warrior longer, had more experience. Her white tail was curled around her paws and the tip was twitching nervously.

I blinked. "Why? Is she missing?"

"Yes…no one can find her. We haven't seen her since yesterday."

I kneaded the ground with my claws. "We should tell Glacierstar."

Glitterpool swallowed. "Creamwhisker tried to do that. But…she wasn't in her den."

"What? Glacierstar wasn't?"

I climbed to my paws and walked past her, into the camp. Everyone was busily searching for their lost leader and deputy. I tried to remember where they had gone last night, but it was impossible.

"Who's going to lead ThunderClan?" fretted Glitterpool.

I swallowed nervously. "Don't," I warned. "Glacierstar and Dragonheart will be found."

The white she-cat with gray patches gave a nod and wandered off to find her brother, casting a final look back at me. Wondering what that was about, I went to see if the apprentices were doing what they were supposed to. Surprisingly, the only apprentice there was Dovepaw.

"What are you doing?" I hissed. "Shouldn't you be helping finding Glacierstar and Dragonheart?"

Dovepaw looked at me with dazzling green eyes. "It is time," she whispered.

I was confused. "What?" I meowed blankly. What was she talking about?

"Come, Ebonyclaw," meowed Dovepaw, pushing past me. She walked into the center of the camp and headed for the gorse tunnel.

"Hey!" I blurted, rushing after her. Apprentices weren't allowed to go outside the camp, especially not at this time. When I spotted her once again, she was talking to a ginger she-cat who looked just as stumped as I had been. Squirreltail blinked and looked at me as I padded over.

"What is she going on about?" hissed Squirreltail.

"I have no idea," I replied. "Dovepaw, what –"

"Come!" ordered Dovepaw. Squirreltail and I glanced at each other, and followed the small white she-cat out of the gorse tunnel and up the ravine. She turned and was soon headed for RiverClan territory.

"Dovepaw…" I began. "Could you please tell us what is going on?"

"In a minute," Glacierstar's apprentice replied. "We must all be here first."

"Well, who's we?" demanded Squirreltail impatiently.

Dovepaw didn't answer as she padded quickly through the forest. She finally stopped at the edge of the river by Sunningrocks, very close to RiverClan territory. I was astonished when she shouted a name, so close to enemy territory,

"Elmheart?"

A light gray warrior I hadn't noticed appeared out of the shrubbery on the ground, and swam across the river with absolute ease of a RiverClan cat. The warrior named Elmheart gave a shake, spraying water all over the ground, and stared at all three of us with curiosity.

"Feathertail told me that I had to come here," he murmured.

I had no idea who Feathertail was, but Dovepaw seemed to. She dipped her head respectfully.

"Elmheart. Your mother wanted you here for very special reasons. All four of you," she added, glancing around us. "There was…a prophecy."

"A prophecy?" repeated Squirreltail disbelievingly. "Why would it include the four of us? We don't have anything in common."

"Oh, yes we do," replied Dovepaw. "Squirreltail, you are the daughter of Firestar and Sandstorm. The former leader of ThunderClan, and probably the most famous cat in the forest."

Her green eyes turned to Elmheart. "Your grandfather is Graystar, Firestar's best friend."

"But my father wasn't a leader of any sort," I protested, my heart clenching.

"No," agreed Dovepaw. "Ravenfur was not the leader. But my mother is Spiraltail, who is the daughter of Spiderpelt, who is the son of Dustpelt." She glanced around at all of us. "Firestar, Sandstorm, Graystar, Ravenfur, Dustpelt. Now do you see?"

Squirreltail answered. "Yeah…those cats. They trained together, as apprentices."

"Exactly." Dovepaw nodded her white head.

"And we are their descendants," I mused thoughtfully.

"But what about Streamtail?" inquired Elmheart. "She's my sister, the same age as me."

Dovepaw shrugged. "StarClan wanted two she-cats, two toms. It would not have been even. Don't tell Streamtail that, though," she added teasingly.

"You said it was StarClan who wanted this?" I asked.

"Yes," replied the white she-cat, ruffling her fur. "The prophecy stated that the descendants of the five cats who were apprentices during Firestar's time as an apprentice are the ones who will defeat Flamesorm if Glacierstar falls."

There was a very uncomfortable silence. Finally,

"If Glacierstar falls?" I repeated. "Well, she's disappeared, does that count?"

Dovepaw purred. "Well, she could be considered dead. If I tell you what happened to her, it would lead to more questions."

"Who's Flamestorm?" asked Elmheart.

"The last Tigerstar," answered Squirreltail. "She tried to get BloodClan to attack ThunderClan. She killed Glacierstar – or, rather, Glacierclaw at that time. Dragonheart, our deputy, killed Flamestorm in return. Since Glacierclaw had once been a Twoleg, she used her Twoleg life to save our Clan."

"Twoleg?" repeated Elmheart in awe. "Glacierstar once was a Twoleg?"

Squirreltail launched into the story of Glacierstar's life. I turned to Dovepaw and whispered,

"So what is it we have to do?"

"Defeat Flamestorm," replied Dovepaw, "before she has the chance to kill all of us."

* * *

"So, how far away is your camp?" I asked Reefpaw.

"Not far now," she replied. "We just moved to the Great Sycamore because LeopardClan was moving too close to our territory. So we moved farther away."

I nodded and concentrated on walking. I was amazed that the Great Sycamore was there in the times of the Great Clans and I guessed it had to be pretty small now, or at least not at its full height. More importantly, I was wondering why the cats of the forest always called TigerClan the cats of the night, and LionClan cats of the sun, and LeopardClan cats of the hunt. Or why they were the size of their name as well, when Reefpaw was an ordinary cat. Unless she really was as small as everyone said she was and the cats of TigerClan really were tigers, and Reefpaw was the ordinary cat.

I'd have to clear things up a bit, I thought with a laugh.

"There it is," meowed Reefpaw suddenly. I nearly crashed into the blue-gray she-cat as she froze. I recognized the sounds of yowls and screeches of cats from inside. My heart lurched. Dragonheart!

Without a word, Reefpaw hurried into her camp. I rushed after her and saw with relief that the cats that I saw were not tigers, but ordinary cats.

I've said before that some cats in the Clans that I was used to are big. Well, that was nothing compared to these cats. They were _huge_. Not tiger huge, but really big and muscular. Their faces were broad and flattened and their bodies showed signs of life in the forest. I recognized vicious scars from many other cats.

Three of them were holding down a very familiar ginger, gray, and black cat. I gasped as another TigerClan warrior came up and slashed at Dragonheart's face. She hissed and spat as blood was drawn, sprinkling the ground. The cats let out yowls of laughter.

"Stop!" cried Reefpaw. "Please, don't!"

The TigerClan cats froze and stared at her. Then a pitch-black tom stalked forward, swishing his tail menacingly.

"Stop what, Reefpaw?" he hissed. "This is a prisoner from outside our Clans."

"She could help us," urged Reefpaw. "Pantherclaw, you should understand…she could help us fight against LeopardClan."

So that's Pantherclaw, I thought, narrowing my eyes. He was the mean warrior I had heard about, and was Reefpaw's father.

"And who is this?" meowed Pantherclaw suddenly. My heart jolted as I realized he was staring at me. "Another prisoner we should torture?"

I stepped forward bravely. "My name is Glacierclaw," I meowed. "I am willing to help you on your quest to defeat LeopardClan, but first you must let my friend go." I nodded toward Dragonheart, who was gasping on the ground.

I expected all the cats to leap at me and start slashing my face, but Pantherclaw was not stupid. The deputy signaled to his warriors to release Dragonheart. My friend collapsed, bleeding heavily. Pantherclaw stalked over to her and pulled her to her feet.

"What is your name?" he snapped.

"Dragonheart…" she gasped.

The black warrior looked at me. "You both have Clan names."

"Yes," I replied, "we are from a Clan far away."

"Why did you leave?"

I hesitated. Then, "We were traveling away from our old territory but the two of us were separated from our Clan. Wolves had chased us."

Pantherclaw bought the story. He jumped slightly as a huge long-haired gray tom pushed past him. Judging by the looks of respect his Clan was giving him, this had to be the leader.

"You will help us?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yes, we will."

The leader flicked his tail. "My name is Wolfstar," he told me. "The current situation with LeopardClan is that their warriors are hunting on our territory as though it is theirs. Cobaltstar, their leader, has attacked us several times. We are barely managing to make it through. We believe that LeopardClan is planning to slowly take over the forest, one Clan at a time."

"Right," I replied. "What are you planning to do?"

"Currently, we are training our young to become warriors as fast as we can before we launch an attack on LeopardClan camp," replied Wolfstar. "I am hoping that Reefpaw, Crystalpaw, Diamondpaw, and Dartpaw will be warrriors very soon." He peered at me. "Have you ever had an apprentice?"

"Three," I answered, my heart clenching when I thought of Dovepaw. "Two are currently warriors."

Wolfstar nodded, impressed. "You and Dragonheart will help in the training of our apprentices," he demanded. "For now, get some sleep. Training will begin at moonrise."

Moonrise? I thought. These cats sleep during the day?

I shot a glance at Dragonheart. She was struggling to remain standing. I was stunned that the Clan hadn't even bothered to do anything about her wounds. I guessed that here, in the time of the Great Clans, you had to be tough. I headed over to Dragonheart and pressed my shoulder against hers as the cats went to their dens.

"Do you have a medicine cat?" I asked Reefpaw as she passed me.

She purred. "Of course," was her response. "Glistenheart. Over there's her den," added Reefpaw, nodding toward a tangle of leaves that was apparently a den.

"I'll make it," grunted Dragonheart. She limped over to the den.

I hurried after Reefpaw. "Where do I sleep?"

The blue-gray she-cat shrugged. "You can sleep in our den, if you want," she offered. "I can introduce you to the other apprentices."

"Great," I replied. I followed Reefpaw to another crudely-made den. Three other apprentices were already inside. One of them, a white she-cat that looked a lot like Dovepaw, hurried up to me and touched her nose to mine.

"Hi!" she exclaimed. "I'm Crystalpaw!"

"Er…hello," I responded, stunned by her cheery mood.

"That's Dartpaw," meowed Reefpaw, nodding toward a sleeping dark gray tom. "And that's Diamondpaw."

The cat in question was a large silver tom with a white diamond on his forehead, hence his name. He merely gave me a nod before settling down in his nest and closing his eyes.

"He doesn't speak," explained Crystalpaw in a whisper. "We don't know why."

"Oh," I mumbled. That was pretty sad. I wondered what was wrong with Diamondpaw.

I found a place to sleep in the far corner of the den. I was glad when my senses shut off and I was dreaming again.

* * *

This was shorter than the last chapter, but better.

I hope I didn't scare anybody from what I said to Sparkheart. XD I just really hope that he/she read that…

Please review!


	12. Chapter Twelve

Right, people. I think Sparkheart has gladly vanished. If you might have noticed, her last review was under Mooncloud's name. That was an accident. Apparently, Sparkheart is Mooncloud's friend, and she hates warriors.

Thank you for everybody who dissed Sparkheart! XD No, just kidding…

* * *

Chapter Twelve

"Glacierclaw, wake up."

A sharp claw prodded me. I was so sleepy I almost thought it was Bramblestar, waking me up to start training. But it was Thymefoot, a dark-pelted tom. He glared at me with sharp blue eyes.

"All the apprentices are already up," he snarled.

Oh. Oops. "Er," I meowed awkwardly, "my Clan is used to getting up at different times."

Thymefoot merely grunted and stalked out of the den. I sat up and gave myself a quick wash, then followed him. The camp was awake with busy cats. I noticed that their Clan was much smaller than the cats I lived with, and I felt a pang of sadness as I remembered every one of them. Will I ever be able to get home? I wondered.

"Glacierclaw, there you are."

It was Reefpaw. The small blue-gray apprentice padded forward and swished her tail. The other three apprentices – Crystalpaw, Diamondpaw, and Dartpaw – were behind her, looking bored.

"Pantherclaw said that you'd assist us in our training," Reefpaw told me.

"What?" I stared. "All four of you?"

She nodded. "Our mentors are busy helping the Clan."

I swallowed and meowed, "All right, sure." I had wanted to see how Dragonheart was, but I guessed she'd be fine. "How long have you been in training?"

"Dartpaw's been in training for four moons," replied Crystalpaw, nodding to each cat in turn. "Diamondpaw and I have been in training for three, and Reefpaw for two."

So they probably have memorized their territories by now, I thought. I'll just see how well they hunt and fight. "Is there a clearing nearby?"

"Yes, it's where we usually train." Crystalpaw flicked her tail. "I'll show you."

The white she-cat turned around and pelted into the forest. I followed quickly, the other three behind me. Crystalpaw stopped suddenly when the trees parted to reveal a grassy clearing. I stalked forward.

"Perfect," I meowed, turning around to face them. "Dartpaw, I want to see how well you fight."

I had chosen Dartpaw because he was the eldest apprentice. To my surprise, the gray tom scowled and meowed,

"Do I have to? My paws hurt."

I hesitated. I had never had to deal with a rude apprentice. "Yes, you do have to," I replied. "If you want to become a warrior, which, I'm sure, every apprentice does."

Dartpaw shrugged. "Being a warrior means there's more work." But he padded forward reluctantly and faced me.

I launched at the surprised tom. He squealed as I tackled him aside. I saw him leapt at me, but I leapt nimbly to the side and brought him down with my huge silver paws.

"Always be ready," I told him, setting him free.

Dartpaw stood up, looking angry. He stood on his toes and dodged out of the way of my next attack. I nodded my encouragement and kept after him, swinging my paws at his legs, trying to trip him. Dartpaw leapt into the air and landed on my back. I fell to the ground, unbalanced, and forced my back into the forest floor.

"Oof!" Dartpaw grunted as the wind was knocked out of him. He instantly let go of me. I got to my feet calmly and faced him.

"Good strategy, Dartpaw," I meowed. "But pay attention to a cat's size." Dartpaw didn't say anything, but limped over to the apprentices and sat next to them, looking gruff.

I trained all four apprentices until the day started to get light. I sent them on a hunting mission after fighting, and all of them brought back lots of prey. The Clan was quite impressed with the progress that their apprentices had made, and their respect for me soon grew. Afterward, I was determined to see Dragonheart. I had heard nothing of her condition from the medicine cat, whose name I had already forgotten.

I headed over to the medicine cat's den and noticed a young, small ginger she-cat sitting close to the entrance, washing herself. She pricked her ears when she scented me approaching and meowed,

"Aren't you Glacierclaw?"

I nodded. "Yes, that's me." I wondered if I'd have to ask what her name was and if she'd be insulted.

But I was saved. "My name is Glistenheart."

I dipped my head respectfully. "How is Dragonheart?"

Glistenheart shrugged. "She is older than I am, but she is strong. Your friend Dragonheart will be fine."

"Good," I meowed, terribly relieved. "How long will it be until she recovers?"

"I gave her some clove and cobwebs. She'll be fine by the next sundown."

Clove? I thought. I had never heard Leafstorm use that type of herb. Maybe the Twolegs had made it become extinct in the forest.

"You can see her," added Glistenheart, stepping aside. I nodded my thanks and walked into the den.

The black, gray, and ginger she-cat was giving herself a wash. A long, gruesome gash ran down her side and between her eyes. I watched her lick the blood off of it and padded forward.

"Hi," I began. "How –"

"That Glistenheart might be young, but she's really cranky," grumbled Dragonheart. "Why are you still here, anyway? In this Clan? I wouldn't want to stay with the Clan that nearly ripped me to shreds, thank you."

I sat down next to her and curled my tail around my paws. "They didn't know what you were," I pointed out.

"Yes, but they didn't recognize the stench of Twolegs on me, did they?"

"Twolegs aren't around here," I meowed. "They don't even know what Twolegs are."

"Oh." Dragonheart looked down at her paws. "Well, they should have been able to recognize the smell of the forest and many cats." She scowled and looked down at her pelt. "I'll be scarred forever," she complained.

Yup, she's fine, I thought, but didn't dare say anything.

Instead, I meowed, "We're going to help them against LeopardClan, aren't we?"

"Why? It's not our problem." Dragonheart returned to licking herself, keeping her ears pointed toward me. "They can deal with it on their own."

"Yes, but these are our ancestors. Well, not exactly our ancestors, but ThunderClan's, and all the others. I honestly think we should help them."

"Fine by me; I mean, we don't have anything better to do." Dragonheart shrugged. "I mean, I guess we're here until Flowertail decides to bring us out."

"She must have been under Flamestorm's orders," I meowed.

"Well, duh. You think Flowertail goes around sucking people into the Moonstone for fun? Of course she was under Flamestorm's orders. I mean –"

"Glacierclaw, get out of here!"

It was Glistenheart again. She was dragging a long-haired ginger tom that I recognized as Auburncloud, a young warrior. A bloody gash was on his hind leg. I ducked out of the medicine cat's den as quickly as possible, getting out of her way. In the center of the camp, I noticed that Pantherclaw and Reefpaw were yowling at each other. I pricked my ears forward to hear.

"Great StarClan, Reefpaw, what were you thinking, you useless furball?" snarled Pantherclaw.

Reefpaw didn't back down. I admired her courage. "It wasn't my fault I couldn't shake that LeopardClan warrior off me! I had no way to go help Auburncloud!"

"If I recall, Glacierclaw showed you how to shake an opponent off of your back during your training lesson!"

I padded quickly forward, stopping a few feet away next to Crystalpaw. "What happened?"

"Pantherclaw, Reefpaw, and Auburncloud met, like, six LeopardClan warriors in our territory." Her green eyes were rimmed with sadness. "Auburncloud was attacked by three of them while Reefpaw was fighting one cat and Pantherclaw two. Apparently, Reefpaw wasn't strong enough to get rid of the cat who was attacking her, so she couldn't help Auburncloud."

I spat. "And that is her fault?"

"Apparently." Crystalpaw rolled her eyes. "Pantherclaw is so cruel."

I turned my attention back to Pantherclaw and Reefpaw.

"You'll be spending the next five days caring for Woodwhisker, and –"

"Woodwhisker?" repeated Reefpaw, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"Yes, Woodwhisker," snarled Pantherclaw.

I suddenly noticed a large ginger tom padding over to them. He looked almost like Firestar. The tom stepped between them and mewed,

"Pantherclaw, I do not believe this is Reefpaw's fault."

The dark-pelted tom glared. "Ha! You're just sticking up for her because she's your apprentice, Foxheart! Are you embarrassed about how your apprentice dealt with an intruder?"

Foxheart didn't look at all crushed. "I have no reason to be mortified about Reefpaw. Maybe _you_ are embarrassed, Pantherclaw, because she is your daughter."

The black tom hesitated and sent Foxheart a scathing look before padding away. Reefpaw's mentor bent to touch noses with his young apprentice.

"Reefpaw, you are a fine apprentice," he murmured. "Do not listen to Pantherclaw."

The blue-gray she-cat nodded nervously and gave her chest fur a quick lick. "Am I really useless?"

Foxheart looked stunned. "Of course not," he replied.

"But I can't even drive off the oldest warrior. I can't make any intruder run away."

"Everyone has their advantages," meowed Foxheart. "You are a wonderful hunter, Reefpaw, because you step lightly because of your size. You brought in the most fresh-kill, didn't you?"

Reefpaw looked away, embarrassed. "I suppose so," she murmured.

Foxheart nodded and padded away, leaving Reefpaw looking slightly happier. I watched Crystalpaw hurry over to her and flick her friend's flank with her tail. I was glad that Reefpaw had someone as cheerful as Crystalpaw for support.

* * *

"So, Dovepaw, why are you the one who brought us all together?" I asked curiously.

Dovepaw looked at me with green eyes. "I am…StarClan's link," she replied. "I know what each cat in StarClan is thinking, even more than a medicine cat."

"I've never heard of something like that before." Squirreltail eyed her suspiciously.

"Someone always has to be StarClan's link, and sometimes it is not a leader or a medicine cat." She blinked and paused. "Firestar was an example. He was receiving prophecies as a kit. Perhaps I am ThunderClan's future leader."

That would be strange, I thought.

Elmheart nervously licked a gray paw. "So how will we defeat Flamestorm?"

Dovepaw purred. "If I simply told you that, then it would be to easy," she meowed. "StarClan wants to test your skills as warriors."

"So you'll help us, but you won't tell us what to do," mewed Squirreltail, looking frustrated.

Dovepaw nodded. I pricked up my ears when I heard the sounds of approaching pawsteps. I recognized the smell before the cat appeared – it was Hollytail, her white fur streaked with blood. She was so terrified that she didn't even notice Elmheart trespassing on ThunderClan territory.

"WindClan is attacking the camp!" she gasped. "We need help!"

Squirreltail nodded. "We're coming." Hollytail flicked her tail and dashed back to camp, her fur fluffed out with fear. "Elmheart," added Squirreltail, "you'd better go back."

The gray warrior nodded in understanding and swam across the river with ease. "I'll be back to help," he promised.

I was so glad that Elmheart was easy to get along with. If he was as rude as Graytail, then things would be much different.

"I'll help defend ThunderClan to," whispered Dovepaw, stepping forward.

"No!" I hissed, beginning to travel to the camp. "You were just made an apprentice. Glacierstar hasn't even given you your first fighting lesson yet! You'll be of no use to us."

Dovepaw closed her eyes. "I am not useless."

Before my eyes, Dovepaw's white fur melted into a silvery gray, and her green eyes became icy blue. She grew until she was almost my height. Dovepaw now looked like my shadow. My blood turned to ice as I realized who she had transformed into.

"Mistycloud…" I whispered, nudging my sister's soft pelt.

"I'm still Dovepaw, Ebonyclaw," she meowed softly, but her voice was that of my familiar sister's. "I'm just borrowing her body for fighting."

"Look." Squirreltail stepped between us. "This is all very nice and all, but can we _please_ concentrate on saving our camp from WindClan?"

I nodded, and raced side by side with my sister, Mistycloud. I didn't understand how Dovepaw could have borrowed her body, as she said, but I didn't care. The three of us burst through the camp entrance, panting and breathing hard, to find the camp filled with snarling, tusseling cats.

Squirreltail ran into the battle as soon as she arrived with us. She launched her powerful body onto a larger gray tom, throwing him off Powderstripe. The ginger she-cat gave his tail a nip, and he ran into the bushes, yowling. Squirreltail too vanished into the thick tide of fighting cats.

I raced to help, Mistycloud by my side. I grabbed onto the scruff of a cat who had tried to slash me. He hissed and leapt onto my back, trying to throw me off balance, but I was faster. I ducked from beneath him and gave a swift swipe to his foreleg, knocking him down. I bit down on the tip of his ear and he screeched in pain and raced away.

I looked around the clearing for Crowstar and realized that without our leader and deputy, what were we? We might not even last. I gave another WindClan warrior a bloody gash on its side and the cat retreated. I finally spotted Crowstar battling Spiderpelt close to the nursery. The black tom was badly hurt – a long slash ran down his leg and his mouth was bleeding, probably from a scratched tongue. As I rushed forward to help, Crowstar gave Spiderpelt a finishing blow to the head and tossed his body aside.

I leapt at the gray tom. He yowled in surprise as I barreled into him, knocking him over to the forest floor. The two of us tusseled fiercely. I felt his claws rake my stomach and I pushed him away, biting his paw. Crowstar snarled and ducked away from my mouth. I gasped as I felt his jaws meet my throat.

With a gurgled cry, I shoved him away, feeling tufts of my fur go with it. I rushed onto Crowstar's side and slashed with all my power. The dark gray tom yowled ferociously and scrambled to his feet, backing away. I waited tensely, watching him, wondering if this was a trick.

But Crowstar pulled his head back and screamed, "WindClan! Retreat!"

I was amazed. We had managed to defend our Clan even without Glacierstar and Dragonheart. Beaten and bloody, the remaining WindClan warriors backed up to their leader's side.

"I won't forget this," hissed Crowstar. He paused and glanced around the clearing. "Where is Glacierstar? I have to tell your Clan something she might enjoy hearing."

No cat answered him. We stared at the ground, feeling lost. Skyfoot and Barkstorm glanced at each other, wondering what to say.

"She's missing?" Crowstar sounded surprised. "Or dead?"

"She's not dead," Fangmouth insisted, stepping forward and ignoring a hiss from Branchtail. "She just…disappeared."

The dark gray tom kneaded his claws against the ground, wincing at the wounds I had given him. "Well, I think you'll want to know," he whispered, "that one of your warriors fell in love with one of WindClan's."

Shocked mews echoed throughout the clearing. I stared at the leader, stumped. Who had done this? Which cat?

"Snowfrost was working for me," continued Crowstar. "She was the mate of this cat. She wanted…" He hesitated, considering. Then, "She wanted to hurt his Clan." His eyes gleamed. "So Snowfrost lured this tom to her territory, hoping to see him again, when his apprentice followed him. Snowfrost attacked this apprentice, who, I learned, later died."

I froze.

Time stopped.

Mistycloud!

He was talking about Mistycloud…the cat who Mistycloud had been following was the one who had sentenced her to her death. I looked around the clearing for my sister, but only spotted Dovepaw by Creekpaw.

"W-which cat was this?" stammered Amberfoot.

Crowstar purred with laughter. "Glacierstar's own son," he hissed. "Nightcloud!"

* * *

Rows and rows of eyes turned to stare at the horrified black-pelted tom. We were so stunned that we didn't notice the WindClan warriors leaving the camp. When I learned that it was Nightcloud's fault that my sister was dead, I swear I saw red. I flew through the air at the tom, scratching his flank with everything I had.

Skyfoot grabbed my scruff and pulled me back. He threw me to the side and hissed, "Don't attack your own warriors!"

"Traitor!" I yowled at Nightcloud. "You killed Mistycloud!"

The rest of the Clan hadn't realized this until now. They were glaring at Nightcloud with almost the same intensity I had.

"What will we do with him?" whispered Burrowfoot.

"Drive him out!" I screeched. "Send him into exile! Flay him if he comes back!"

Squirreltail stepped forward, swishing her long ginger tail. "I say drive him out," she hissed.

"It's not your decision," snapped Creamwhisker. The younger tom leered defiantly at the she-cat. "It's Glacierstar's."

"Well, she's not here, is she?" snapped Squirreltail. "I'm the senior warrior here, and I say get rid of him."

Normally, I didn't like the hot-tempered Squirreltail that much, but right now I deeply respected her opinion. I joined in with Graytail and a few other cats, yowling for Nightcloud to be chased out of our forest.

The black and silver tom watched with empty amber eyes. I felt no pity for him at all. Leafstorm abandoned Spiderpelt's side, who was just barely breathing, and stalked over to Squirreltail with Blizzardpaw just behind her.

"Squirreltail, think about this," she whispered. "Nightcloud has always been a good warrior. He –"

"He's a traitor!" I screamed.

" – he helped our Clan in many times of trouble. Besides, if you'll remember, Graystar had done exactly the same thing with a RiverClan cat."

Squirreltail still didn't change her mind. She chased Nightcloud out of the territory herself, so angry with what he had done. The smaller black tom raced from the camp, not uttering a sound.

* * *

I think there'll be about one or two more chapters before this is finished. I want to write that Whitestorm fic soon. Also, I don't know if there'll be a sequel to this fic – there'll be an in-between thing, with what happened between TTW and this fic, but I don't know about a third one.

Anyway, please review!


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Yeah! Yeah! Kick-ass! Kick-ass! School's out, people! And to celebrate, here's chapter thirteen! A little shorter than the others, but who cares? This one's sad, too, so watch out! Weeee! School's out! XD

* * *

Chapter Thirteen

"TigerClan! Enemies!"

A small white she-cat streamed into the clearing. It was Windpelt, and her fur was fluffed up in fear. I stopped eating my piece of fresh-kill and looked up. Windpelt waited, her eyes wide.

The rest of the Clan didn't have much time to prepare before a number of fierce, angry cats burst through the tunnel. I instinctively leapt to my feet, forgetting about my dinner, and gazed at the enemy warriors around me.

These warriors looked much different than the TigerClan cats I lived with now – they were much bigger, sure, but they carried the stench of crowfood. Their pelts were dull and I could count their ribs – these cats were starving. It was no wonder why they wanted to take over TigerClan territory.

Wolfstar appeared out of his den, swishing his tail angrily. The TigerClan leader advanced toward the group of cats and called out,

"Cobaltstar."

A massive blue-gray tom emerged out of the crowd. Like his warriors, he looked thin and his fur unkept, but he was even larger than Wolfstar. Cobaltstar watched the TigerClan leader with piercing eyes, and hissed,

"Cats of the night, this territory is no longer yours."

TigerClan let out yowls of anger. I saw Reefpaw swishing her tail furiously. Pantherclaw, who was nearby, sneered something at her. The smaller she-cat flattened her ears and stepped back.

"You can't have our territory, Cobaltstar!" snarled Wolfstar. "This has belonged to TigerClan for ages. We will never give it up!"

His warriors yowled their agreement. The LeopardClan leader narrowed his eyes dangerously, and called over his shoulders, "Attack!"

"Attack!" cried Wolfstar, and leaped into the battle.

Determined to prove that I was loyal to this new Clan, I launched after him. A massive brown tabby knocked me aside and I hissed angrily, batting at his ear with unsheathed claws. He growled, with a glint in his amber eyes that was both frightened and confident, and sailed through the air at me. I jumped nimbly to the side and spat at him, swiping my claws. One of them caught the his back foot. He screeched and ran into the bushes.

All around me, cats were fighting, screaming in TigerClan camp. Our Clan was stronger than LeopardClan's, but, the enemy had more members. I spotted Crystalpaw and Dartpaw two-one-three with LeopardClan warriors.

A ferocious yowl sounded next to me. I spotted Yarrowflower, a sleek gray she-cat, furiously clawing at a tabby she-cat. Blood was flowing into Yarrowflower's eyes and she couldn't see properly. I leapt onto the back of her attacker and pulled her off, giving the cat a firm bite on her neck. Like the tom, she ran away, yowling in anger.

I checked to see if Yarrowflower was all right, but she was already attacking another cat who was tusseling with Windpelt.

_Wham! _A huge blow collided with me, knocking the air out of my lungs. Gasping for breath, I saw the fierce blue eyes of the LeopardClan deputy, Shadefoot, above me. He ripped me to shreds. Since I couldn't move, the tom had me pinned. I yowled for help as my flank was scratched again and again.

Then…I felt him get off of me. I looked up and saw Diamondpaw holding the scruff of Shadefoot's neck in his mouth, his amber eyes gleaming. With incredible strength, Diamondpaw flung him away, into the bushes. I was so impressed. With a nod to show my thanks, I rushed to help my other Clanmates.

I spotted Cobaltstar and Wolfstar fighting fiercely with each other, rolling on the ground and yowling, claws flashing. I rushed forward to help them, but Cobaltstar bared his teeth.

"Don't waste your time!" he snarled.

I rushed to help Wolfstar anyway. I bolted toward them and leaped on Cobaltstar's back, but the huge leader delivered a kick to my stomach. I tumbled backward and felt my head hit a rock.

_Bam!_

Blackness.

Slowly, slowly, I felt my mind returning. I was waking up. I scrambled to my feet and looked for Flamestorm, but the only thing around me was Silverpelt.

"Flamestorm!" I cried. "Where are you?"

She didn't answer. Usually, she visited me in my dreams, every time I lost touch with the world. But not now; she was gone. I felt a pang of worry. What if she was hurting ThunderClan?

The eyes of the familiar StarClan cats came into view. I rushed forward to meet Bramblestar.

"I lost a life, didn't I?" I whispered.

He nodded gravely. "You now have seven left."

I shuddered. Seven more times, and I'd be gone for good. I looked at Bramblestar and meowed, "Where is Flamestorm?"

Bramblestar exchanged an uneasy glance with Graystar. "All will work out," murmured the gray warrior. "Do not fear, Glacierstar."

Another gray shape came into view. It was Mistycloud. She nodded to me respectfully and meowed, "Remember, Glacierstar. Be sure to watch the dragon."

And I was back.

Back in the TigerClan camp that had turned into a battlefield. I scrambled to my paws, and swayed, uneasy at first. But when I remembered Mistycloud's warning, I bolted into the medicine cat's den and saw Dragonheart inside, her green eyes frustrated that she was too injured to help. I nodded to her and backed outside. At least she was safe.

I looked around the clearing and was so relieved to see that the number of LeopardClan cats were thinning greatly, until the last of them disappeared into the hollow. I had a good look around the camp. Nests were spread out everywhere and the fresh-kill pile was destroyed. Wounded cats lay everywhere.

I padded over to Reefpaw and touched her flank. "You fought well," I murmured, even though I hadn't seen her.

"Thanks," she panted.

I spotted Diamondpaw a few rabbit-leaps away. He was staring emptily into space, a bloody scratch above his right eye.

"He's amazing," I meowed, nodding toward Diamondpaw. "He saved me from Shadefoot. Threw him into the bushes with his own strength."

Reefpaw's eyes dimmed. "He…he's my brother."

I whipped around and stared at her in shock. "What? But he's older than you!"

"I know. Our mother, Scarletflower, had had a single kit, Diamondpaw, first. Then she died bearing me a moon later." Slowly, Reefpaw turned to look at me. "Perhaps that is why Pantherclaw hates me so much."

In the short time I had known Reefpaw, she had already grown to be a friend. I nuzzled her shoulder comfortingly and shot another glance at Diamondpaw. Now that I looked at them both, their fierce amber eyes shone identically in the dim light, and were similar to Pantherclaw's, their father. But then I was surprised when I felt her stiffen beside me.

"StarClan, _no!_" she wailed, rushing forward. I climbed to my feet, confused. What had happened?

Reefpaw rushed forward, pushing past the crowd of cats. I noticed that some of them gave her dirty looks as she passed, but Reefpaw didn't care. I followed her, and froze in shock and sadness when a huge ginger-pelted body appeared in front of me.

"No…" whispered Reefpaw, settling herself next to him.

"Foxheart," I murmured. He was dead. A nasty bite to the neck had saw to that. My heart ached with sadness and pity for Reefpaw, and I wished I had gotten to know Foxheart better before he died. I didn't think he had even spoken to me during the time I had spent with TigerClan.

Wolfstar padded forward, his eyes rimmed with sadness. He pressed his nose against Foxheart's flank and murmured, "He hunts with StarClan now."

From behind Wolfstar, I spotted Pantherclaw whispering something to Thymefoot. I was horrified to see that they were both staring at me, and I felt my blood turn to ice. Had they seen me go into the losing a life trance?

Wolfstar sat down, his tail curled around his paws. His deep voice addressed the whole Clan. "Cats of TigerClan," he meowed, "Foxheart was a noble warrior, but it is time he left us. His spirit belongs in StarClan now." He closed his eyes for a brief second. "But now, we must focus on repairing the camp. The apprentices must repair the wall. Pantherclaw, organize a hunting party."

"Hey!" It was Crystalpaw, glaring at Wolfstar from behind me. "What about Reefpaw's new mentor?"

The blue-gray she-cat hadn't moved from her position beside Foxheart's body.

"Oh." For a moment, Wolfstar seemed confused. Like he had completely forgotten about Reefpaw. "Yes," he added quickly. "I shall appoint Reefpaw's new mentor immediately." He paused, considering. Then, "Pantherclaw, you are my wise and loyal deputy. Please teach young Reefpaw everything you know."

"Of course," purred Pantherclaw, a horrible glint in his eyes. He waited for Reefpaw to come and touch noses with him, in the traditional way.

But Reefpaw hadn't moved. Her blue-gray fur was fluffed up in fear. Normally, Reefpaw was a bold she-cat who loved facing challenges, but now she looked terrified. I was stunned when she turned around and bolted out of the camp. Crystalpaw called after her, but Diamondpaw rushed after his sister. He too disappeared.

Pantherclaw hissed and dug his claws into the ground. "When I get my claws on her –"

"Don't, Pantherclaw," interrupted Wolfstar. "Reefpaw and Diamondpaw will come back. They can't stay away forever." He actually looked concerned, but I couldn't help wondering if he was worried about Diamondpaw, not Reefpaw. "Carry out the orders," added Wolfstar to his deputy. "We need to rebuild." And Wolfstar entered the nursery to check on the kits.

I watched Pantherclaw assign each cat a job, feeling horrible about Reefpaw. How could Wolfstar had done that? Make Pantherclaw, the cat Reefpaw hated the most, her mentor? I wanted to go find Reefpaw and quickly as possible, but the look in Pantherclaw's eyes told me to stay right where I was.

I stiffened as Pantherclaw padded over to me. The much larger tom fixed me with a cool amber gaze and I was reminded of an old Diamondpaw, except with darker fur.

"So, Glacierclaw," he sneered, "or should I call you Glacier_star?_"

I swallowed nervously. This was just what I had been afraid of. I avoided Pantherclaw's gaze and mumbled, "I don't know what you're takling about."

He snorted. "Don't lie! I saw you go into the nine lives trance when Cobaltstar kicked you, Glacierstar. You lost a life. You are a _leader. _I know you are!"

I raised my blue eyes into his amber ones. "So what if I am? What difference does it make? I'm still going to help you defeat LeopardClan." Without waiting for an answer, I padded over to sit next to Crystalpaw, who was still staring emptily at the place Reefpaw had disappeared into.

Crystalpaw shot a glance at me and mewed, "She's coming back, isn't she? I mean, it isn't safe out there, not when LeopardClan's…" She trailed off and shuddered. I didn't think I had ever seen Crystalpaw look anything but cheerful and happy-go-lucky. Now she looked sad and terribly worried. "And Diamondpaw…"

Oh, so Crystalpaw liked Diamondpaw. It wasn't only Reefpaw she was worried about.

"They'll be back," I told her, trying to convince myself. "Don't worry about it." I paused, trying to think of something to say. Then, "Crystalpaw, there is another Clan besides just TigerClan and LeopardClan, right?"

She stirred and looked at me. "Yes, of course. There's LionClan. They live on the northern moorland."

"Really? Who's there leader?"

Crystalpaw looked a bit confused. "Snowystar. He's old, but wise and fair. Why?"

I swallowed hard, and then meowed, "Has Wolfstar even considered asking Snowystar for help?"

The white she-cat stared. "No! Wolfstar is much too proud to ask another Clan to help his. He would rather do things on his own."

"Sometimes, that is the only way to win – to ask for help." I thought of Iciclestar. "Anything to win a war. I want to talk to Wolfstar."

"What? Wait, Glacierclaw –"

I ignored her and padded over to his den, mewing a quiet greeting inside. Wolfstar's voice sounded inside. "Glacierclaw, come in."

I walked inside. I had never been in this den before. It looked very different from my den, back in ThunderClan, which was stone carved out by an ancient stream. This one didn't look all that special. It was just ferns and other shrubbery strung together to make shelter.

I dipped my head to Wolfstar and meowed, "Wolfstar, I have a suggestion for you to make to win the war against LeopardClan."

The silver tom perked up and faced me. "I'm listening, Glacierclaw."

I winced at the name. I'd have to tell him the truth sooner or later. "I think you should ask LionClan for help."

Wolfstar bristled. "What? Are you mad? Snowystar would never help me."

"I am friends with a Clan leader back in my old home. We have faced many challenges together."

"Then you come from a strange place, Glacierclaw," he snapped. He flicked his tail in annoyance.

I swallowed. "Then at least let me talk to him, Wolfstar. I mean, it's worth a try, right?"

The gray tom hesitated. Then, "All right, Glacierclaw. You can go. But take a cat with you – Crystalpaw, perhaps." Good, Crystalpaw, I thought. I got along well with her. Again, Wolfstar paused. "And Glacierclaw…" He looked up at me. "Do look out for Reefpaw and Diamondpaw, won't you? In fact, please find out where they are."

"Yes, of course, Wolfstar," I meowed, feeling my stomach tighten. I wondered how difficult it would be to find a couple of apprentices. "I'll take Crystalpaw and leave right now."

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Bit of a cliffy, I'm sorry. Please review! 


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Hi guys. I know I said that this story would end at about chapter twelve, but I'm having too much fun with Reefpaw! XD So it'll be a few chapters longer. Anyway, here's chapter fourteen!

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Chapter Fourteen

"Crystalpaw," I meowed, stalking toward her. The white-pelted apprentice looked up from her vole, green eyes shining.

"Oh, you're back," she mewed before I could continue. "I guess Wolfstar didn't have your tail off, did he?"

"No." I purred. "He…wants to try my idea out. And he wants you to come with me." Crystalpaw rose to her paws, her tail lashing.

"To LionClan territory?" She kneaded the ground with her claws. "Well, I suppose if I have to. I really don't want to leave in case Reefpaw or Diamondpaw come back…"

I sat down and curled a silver tail around my paws. "Wolfstar told me to find them as well. So, come on, Crystalpaw, let's get this over with." The white she-cat nodded and swiped a tongue over her teeth in excitement.

We turned to go out of the camp, but I froze when I heard a disdainful mew behind us. "Hey, where are you going?" I turned around, expecting Pantherclaw, but it was Dartpaw. This didn't offer much relief. I scowled angrily and hissed,

"We're going on a patrol, Dartpaw. I don't suppose I need to tell you each time where I'm going, do I?"

"No." Dartpaw calmly sat down. "But I don't think you're just going on a patrol, either, Glacierclaw. I saw you come out of Wolfstar's den and right over to Crystalpaw. So, I ask you again: where are you going?"

Crystalpaw lashed her tail. "None of you business, foxdung," she snapped. "Come on, Glacierclaw. Let's go."

I nodded and turned away, through the tunnel that led out of the camp, Crystalpaw right behind me. I stopped suddenly when I heard another bunch of pawsteps and whipped around,

"You're not coming, Dartpaw!" I snarled.

"Make me," he retorted. "I'm coming."

"When I tell Orangefur about this," I growled, referring to Dartpaw's mentor, "you'll be taking care of the elders for a long time!"

"He'll ask the same thing I am," mewed Dartpaw.

Crystalpaw sighed and gave the gray tom a dirty look. "Oh, let's have him come," she mewed reluctantly. "I mean, if it'll make him shut up, and we could use the help."

"Fine," I grunted as Dartpaw brightened. I began walking again, with the two apprentices at my sides. "We're going to ask Snowystar to help us against LeopardClan," I began.

"Snowystar of LionClan?" Dartpaw blinked.

"Do you know any other Snowystar?"

"That's kind of cowardly, isn't it?" mewed the gray tom, ignoring me. "Asking another leader for help because your own Clan can't defend itself…it doesn't seem right. I mean –"

"LeopardClan!" hissed Crystalpaw suddenly. Her white fur was fluffed up so she looked twice her size. Dartpaw and I froze and sniffed the air. Indeed, I recognzied the disgusting stench of our enemies.

Unsheathing my claws, I prepared for the worst. I had no idea where this attack was going to come from. But then I noticed a white she-cat with amber eyes stalk out of the shrubbery. Her eyes showed no will to fight; rather they were full of sympathy.

Dartpaw wasn't quite the same way. "Get off our territory!" he snarled.

The white she-cat shrugged. "Okay. Shadefoot ordered me to hunt here, but this isn't my territory. I can't."

I was surprised by her mood. "You won't follow orders because you don't think this is right?"

She shook her head. "No." I watched as she looked me up and down. "You know, I haven't seen you before. I mean, I've seen all of TigerClan at the Gatherings, but not you."

I didn't know how to answer that, so I told her my name. "Since you don't know me, I'm Glacierclaw. This is Dartpaw, and Crystalpaw." I flicked my tail at each apprentice.

"I'm Whitecloud." She nodded to me. "I'm so sorry for what we're doing to your Clan, Glacierclaw. I know all of you must be suffering."

"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "Why have you suddenly decided to destroy us?"

Whitecloud hesitated. Then, "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you. In our Clan, strange creatures are moving in. They walk on only two paws, and have very little fur, as far as I can see." She let out a sigh. "They are destroying our territory by moving in. Strange nest-like things are being put up at the back of our territory."

I stared at her. "Oh, great StarClan," I whispered. "Twolegs." The Twolegs had just started to move into the forest!

Whitecloud peered at me. "Sorry? Twolegs?"

I straightened up. "Those creatures are called Twolegs. At least, that's what we call them, at my old home."

"Oh! So you have these creatures in your territory too. What do they want?"

"To live in the forest," I replied. "They won't go away, I'm sorry. But it's possible to live among them. We do. Did."

The she-cat nodded and dipped her head. "Well, I'm sorry to have held you up, wherever you three are going. I think I'll return to my Clan now – I'm empty-pawed, but Shadefoot will have to deal with it." Whitecloud sighed. "He's such a mouse-brain. Anyway, good-bye, Glacierclaw."

Before I could respond, the she-cat turned tail and stalked into the forest, toward LeopardClan territory. Dartpaw stepped forward, his tail lashing.

"Can we trust her?" he wondered.

"We didn't tell her anything that she'd use against our Clan," I pointed out. "Come on, let's keep going."

Crystalpaw and Dartpaw nodded and continued to follow me. I was amazed at how different this territory was from ThunderClan territory. Back over there, I knew where every tree was, every rock, every fallen log. But here, I knew nothing about it. It was unnerving. I was relieved when the trees disappeared and I was facing a clearing. In the distance, sloping down the hill, were four huge oak trees with a large rock in the middle. I was stunned that Fourtress was here too, so long ago.

Ahead of us was the river. It was wider than what I remembered it to be. Maybe the Twolegs had helped clog it up so it wasn't as wide as it used to be. I waded into the water, testing to see if it was shallow. It was freezing, but passible. I looked back at the apprentices.

"Come on," I meowed. "It's not hard."

Crystalpaw followed me without question, but Dartpaw hesitated.

"Don't be a coward," teased the white she-cat.

Dartpaw scowled and waded in ahead of her. "Shut up, Crystalpaw," he mewed.

I wished my fur was a bit longer to keep me warm as I climbed out of the river and shook my short fur. The two younger cats climbed up beside me, shivering. I watched as they shook all over the ground.

"Hey." Crystalpaw paused and looked up. "Do you hear that?"

I pricked my ears and listened. Finally, I picked up a dull roar echoing farther down, past the Fourtress. For a moment I was confused; what was that? Then it came to me: the Thunderpath was being built.

"I…It's nothing," I stammered. "Let's keep going."

We trudged on. I could tell that apprentices were getting tired, but I didn't want to stop. I kept sniffing around for Reefpaw and Diamondpaw's scent, but there was nothing. They must have gone further away.

"There it is." Dartpaw stopped and looked up. "LionClan territory."

I had gone to LionClan – or, rather, WindClan – territory a few times. My most recent was when Bramblestar led the patrol to attack WindClan in order to settle the matter with Robinstar. That was when I was still deputy.

"Right," I meowed. "Let's walk in, and if a patrol finds us, don't attack."

As we trekked into the unfamiliar territory, I was surprised to see that Crystalpaw and Dartpaw's fur was bristling fearfully. I remembered that they had never purposely entered an enemy territory before, and my mind was sent back to my apprentice days, when Dragonheart, Flamestorm, a patrol, and I had gone into ShadowClan territory to rescue Rainwhisker…

"Cats," whispered Crystalpaw suddenly, standing very tall. She looked twice her size with her fluffy white fur fluffed up.

I froze as four cats came out of the tall grass – unlike TigerClan and LeopardClan, these cats looked well-fed – of course, the Twolegs had affected them the least. The first one, a huge ginger-pelted tom, stepped forward, his teeth bared.

He sniffed uncertainly, and then hissed, "TigerClan! This is LionClan's territory."

Before I could stop him, Dartpaw stepped forward. "I'm sorry to intrude, Torchpelt," he meowed with the most respect I had ever heard him give, "but we would like to speak with your leader."

The tom named Torchpelt's amber eyes narrowed dangerously. "What for?"

I flicked my tail over Dartpaw's mouth to silence him. "Our Clan is in immediate danger from LeopardClan," I meowed. "I fear that Cobaltstar is trying to take over the entire forest. We must band together before this happens."

A smaller black and white tom stepped forward next to Torchpelt and whispered, "You know, Cobalstar _has_ been acting a little weird, so –"

"Be quiet, Patchfur." Torchpelt faced us. "Fine, we'll bring you to our leader."

I dipped my head graciously to the warrior as I allowed them to take me into their camp. Two warriors surrounded us from behind, while Torchpelt and a she-cat lead in front. The grassy, rocky moorland split into a flat clearing above, where many cats were resting in the shade and sharing tongues. They stared curiously at the three of us, looking like prisoners.

I watched as a tom with a purely white pelt stalked over to us. His amber eyes narrowed with wisdom and he meowed, "Torchpelt, what have you brought us?"

"Three TigerClan cats, Snowystar," he meowed. "They say they need your help."

Snowystar hesitated. "Really?"

"Y-Yes," I stammered, dipping my head. "My name is Glacierclaw, and this is Dartpaw, and Crystalpaw." I took a breath. "LeopardClan has been constantly attacking our Clan, Snowystar. We are having to move further and further away from them, and our prey is becoming scarce from what they have taken. I believe that they will stop at nothing to move onto your territory as well. So I think that we must band together in order to stop this evil Clan from reaching its goal."

I left out the part about the Twolegs and the monsters and waited for Snowystar's response. I was so happy when he bowed his head.

"You are correct, Glacierclaw," he meowed. "I do believe that Cobaltstar is plotting something." He raised his head. "Very well. LionClan will help you."

"Thank you, Snowystar," I meowed.

"Do you want us to come back with you now? Or…?"

"I believe Wolfstar will tell you when he plans to attack LeopardClan once and for all," I replied. "Until then, we will contact you."

Snowystar nodded. "All right. Torchpelt, lead these TigerClan cats out of our land."

The cat, who I assumed was deputy, nodded and flicked his tail at us. I was quite glad to leave the stares of the other cats, but at least our conversation with Snowystar had gone well, and that Dartpaw had managed to keep his mouth shut.

"That was great." Naturally, it was Dartpaw. "Snowystar will help us now!"

"Don't think that he'll be able to weasel you out of everything," growled Torchpelt as we walked. "You'll have to take care of yourselves sometime."

I couldn't help but retort. "We've been doing absolutely fine, even since LeopardClan is taking all our prey! It was the sensible thing to ask for help."

Torchpelt merely grunted and didn't say good-bye to us when we were on the edge of the territory. I thought about what we had to do next. Finding Reefpaw and Diamondpaw could take a very long time. I wondered how we'd ever be able to do it.

"Right," I meowed, stalking forward, "I think the best way to go is over by ShadowCla – I mean, the swamp. I seriously don't think that those two would go close to LeopardClan territory, do you?"

Crystalpaw shook her head. "No, they aren't that stupid."

"The swamp?" Dartpaw wrinkled his nose. "Sorry, but I don't want to go over there."

"You have to," I retorted. "Come on."

As we crossed the remain of LionClan territory, I was relieved when I saw that Dartpaw was following me when my paw touched the first swampy part. I hated the way my paws sank a few inches when I walked, but I'd have to deal with it until we found Reefpaw and Diamondpaw.

"Glacierclaw…" I turned around. Crystalpaw, being the smallest of the three of us, was up to her neck in murky water. I reached down and grabbed her scruff with my teeth, ignoring her squeak of protest. She regained her balance and looked gruff as we continued to walk. "I hate this place!"

"I do too," I agreed. "But we might find Diamondpaw and Reefpaw here."

"I smell them!" Dartpaw cried suddenly. "There! They went that way!"

I whipped around and tasted the air. He was right – I recognized Reefpaw's scent, mingled with Diamondpaw's. I gave Dartpaw an encouraging look and bounded forward, with the two of them behind me. I was relieved when I felt solid ground beneath my feet. A small hill was sloping up. I knew I was in a future ShadowClan camp. I sniffed the air and was glad to discover there was still a trace of the two cat's scents in the air.

"Look! A badger hole!" Without waiting for me to say anything, Crystalpaw ran forward.

"Hey…" I protested as I rushed after her. I indeed saw a familiar badger hole in the ground that my mentor had shown me as an apprentice. As I neared, I heard voices coming from the inside.

"What are we going to do?"

It was a calm voice, gentle and kind. I didn't recognize it.

"I'm not going back to camp so long as Pantherclaw's my mentor," came Reefpaw's determined mew. "Not until Wolfstar changes my mentor."

"Reefpaw?" meowed Crystalpaw hesitantly, peering inside the hole.

I heard a dull thud. Then bright amber eyes appeared in the darkness, and a blue-gray body rushed out, tackling Crystalpaw. With a sigh, another silver cat came out.

"Ack!" squealed Crystalpaw as Reefpaw knocked her on her back. "Oh, it _is_ you," she added.

"Crystalpaw, I missed you!" she meowed.

I turned to Diamondpaw. His amber eyes were fixed on his sister. "I heard you _talking,_" I meowed. "I thought you were a mute."

The silver tom's ears flicked nervously. I was stunned when he meowed, "I only speak to my sister." He turned his amber eyes toward me. "Did you know that? We're siblings?"

"Yeah, Reefpaw told me," I replied. "Are you going to go home?"

Diamondpaw shrugged. "I don't know," he replied. I was still shocked to hear him speaking. "Reefpaw doesn't want to go back until Wolfstar changes her mentor. Pantherclaw…you don't know everything about him."

"What?" I turned, absolutely stunned. "Why? What happened?"

"It was Pantherclaw who killed Scarletflower, our mother," he meowed, his voice hollow. "Apparently, Reefpaw was supposed to die too, but then our medicine cat came in the den, and he didn't have much of a choice."

I felt the ground sway beneath my paws. "Oh, great StarClan," I whispered. "Why didn't you tell Wolfstar?"

"Pantherclaw threatened us not to. Or, rather, _me_ not to. He doesn't know that Reefpaw knows what he did."

"I'm turning him in," I growled, "before he can kill someone else!"

I was glad that Diamondpaw didn't disagree with me. "Yes," he meowed. "I have kept the secret long enough, and I am almost a warrior. I will tell Wolfstar what Pantherclaw has done as soon as I get back to camp."

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Sorry it's not with Ebonyclaw and ThunderClan – I think I'll finish with the Great Clans before I finish up there. Next chapter: LionClan and TigerClan band together to defeat LeopardClan… 


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Wow, that took a while, didn't it? Man. That's sad. Sorry, people. Here's chapter fifteen.

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Chapter Fifteen

We were almost there. The five of us – all four apprentices and one warrior/leader – had finally made it out of that swamp and were on ThunderClan territory.

"There's always a chance that Wolfstar won't believe you," I told Reefpaw and Diamondpaw. "You'll have to be prepared for that."

"He'll listen to me," meowed the silver tom who was Reefpaw's brother. "I'm his apprentice. He knows I don't lie."

Dartpaw shivered. "I can't believe Pantherclaw actually killed a Clan member," he meowed. For once, the dark gray tom actually seemed sincere. "I always thought he was a good, loyal warrior."

The trees washed around us. I was relieved to be in the safety of the forest and prayed that Dragonheart was all right. I remembered what had happened the last time a cat had been injured like that – Mistypaw, or, rather, Mistycloud, had died. But at least their medicine cat had told me that she'd be fine. I felt a lurch of fear. What if the camp was being attacked while I had gone to LionClan territory?

"Come on, let's hurry," I told the apprentices, quickening my pace. I had become almost as loyal to TigerClan as I had been to ThunderClan as a warrior. I hoped that, when I returned, I'd still be as loyal as I ever was.

We pushed through the familiar gorse tunnel and were surprised to see that the camp was completely empty. No cats were sleeping in their dens, nor were they leaving for patrols. I blinked, wondering where they had gone.

"What happened?" gasped Crystalpaw. "Where did they go?"

"Maybe the threat of LeopardClan grew more severe," suggested Diamondpaw sensibly. "Wolfstar probably made them leave to avoid a terrible battle."

"We'll track them," I told the apprentices. "Come on."

I stalked outside the camp again, sniffing the air. There were so many scents of cats that it was hard to pinpoint a direction, but at last I decided that they had gone toward the area where Twolegplace would be built.

"This way!" I called to the young cats, flicking my tail. They followed me without question. We trotted around wall of the entire camp. I was sure they had gone this way. As we clampered up a steep hill, I detected the fresher scents of cats. Yes, they had gone this way recently. I panted at the top of the hill and glanced around. There was a clearing to the right, between trees, and I knew that that was where TigerClan was.

I looked down at the apprentices. They were gasping for breath and were very tired from all the traveling, but they wanted to keep going. "We're almost there," I told them.

We walked, slower because the other four were so tired, into TigerClan's new camp. I was so relieved to see that I had been right – the Clan was here. They perked up curiously to see who was arriving, and a familiar yowl sounded amidst the cats.

"Glacierclaw!" It was Dragonheart. She rushed toward me, purring loudly. "Glad you're back."

"Glad you're out of the medicine cat's den," I replied.

"Glacierclaw." A long-haired gray tom was padding toward me. I dipped my head to TigerClan's leader. "Were you successful? Will LionClan help us?"

"Yes," I replied. "Snowystar wanted us to contact him when we are ready to launch the final battle on LeopardClan."

Yowls of joy and determination rose from TigerClan, but for some reason, Wolfstar still didn't look happy. Pantherclaw stalked out of the warriors' den with a horrible look on his face. I blinked in confusion.

"Glacierclaw," began Wolfstar, "apparently Pantherclaw told me some interesting information about you. He said that you had badly hit your head on a rock during the battle, but after a moment, you got up, good as new." He peered at me. "Only one thing could explain this: you lost a life. You're a Clan leader."

The Clan stared at me in shock. I felt my ears grow hot with embarrassment. Dragonheart gave me a bitter look.

"What about your friend? Is she hiding secrets too?" demanded Pantherclaw, flicking his tail at the tortoiseshell she-cat beside me.

"She…she's my deputy…" I stammered. I looked Wolfstar straight in the eyes. "And yes, it's true – I'm a Clan leader. You can call me Glacierstar."

Wolfstar let out a hiss between his bared teeth. "The consequence to lying to TigerClan is death," he growled.

I flinched in shock. Now they would kill me? My silver fur began to bristle and my claws unsheathed.

"However, we will need you for the battle. Both of you are now prisoners of TigerClan. You are not allowed to leave the camp without at least three warriors escorting you." He fixed me with a furious amber stare before whipping around and stalking into his den, motioning for his deputy to follow him.

I stared after him, feeling dismay burn through my fur. How could I have been so stupid? I wished deeply that I had told Reefpaw that I was a leader, not an ordinary warrior. But still she would have wondered what a leader was doing here and not looking for her Clan.

Speaking of Reefpaw, I turned toward her, hoping she wouldn't hate me for this. But her amber eyes showed sympathy.

"I'm sorry for this, Glaciercl – Glacierstar," she told me. "I hope it'll work out okay…" Diamondpaw nodded his agreement.

Dartpaw, however, wasn't the same. "Keep that piece of foxdung away from me," he growled. "She's a lying mousebrain. Wolfstar should have killed her!" He headed toward the apprentices' den.

"Dartpaw!" Crystalpaw called after him, shocked. She kneaded the ground with her claws, a habit she had gotten into. "I'm really sorry, Glacierstar," she meowed, sounding like Reefpaw.

I bowed my head. "It's all right. At least we're not dead." I flicked my tail over Dragonheart's flank.

"Should I tell Wolfstar about Pantherclaw?" asked Diamondpaw, dropping his voice.

Dragonheart stared in shock. "Oh, Diamondpaw! You spoke!" She purred loudly, giving his ear a lick. "But what's all this about Pantherclaw?"

Reefpaw turned toward her and told her all about how Pantherclaw had killed Scarletflower, their mother, and so forth.

"I don't think you should tell Wolfstar just yet," I told Diamondpaw. "Not with this whole situation with me. Wait till it dies down a bit, and after the battle. Remember, we need as many warriors as we can get."

The silver tom nodded. "All right, Glacierstar. After the battle." And he headed toward the apprentices' den with Dartpaw. Reefpaw and Crystalpaw followed him.

"I can't believe it…" whispered Dragonheart. "Pantherclaw did seem rather mean, but murder…" The tortoiseshell looked at me with wide green eyes. "I don't believe it."

I sighed. "Believe it. Come on, I'm exhausted."

We headed toward the warriors' den, which had been carelessly made with the nearby bushes. When we reached it, however, Thymefoot bared his teeth.

"Prisoners sleep outside," growled the gray tom.

Windpelt mewed in protest. "Give them a break, Thymefoot. They're separated from their Clan, remember?"

"They might have lied about that too," he snapped.

Dragonheart opened her mouth to protest, but I swiped my tail over her mouth. "It's okay," I meowed. "We'll sleep underneath the shade of a tree." I moved away, but Dragonheart didn't budge. "Come on," I snapped at her, poking her with a claw.

The tortoiseshell gave the cats a very angry look, and padded after me.

"We've done so much for their Clan!" complained Dragonheart. "Well, okay, _you_ have, I was stuck in the medicine cat's den, recovering, while you defended the Clan during the battle with tooth and claw! And you traveled all that way to LionClan territory to ask for help! They should at least give us some slack!"

"These cats are different from the ones we are used to," I told her, settling down beside a tree trunk. I meant to say more, but I was so tired that when I laid my head on my paws, I instantly fell asleep.

"Glacierstar!" a familiar, young voice cried frantically.

I opened my eyes. I was no longer in TigerClan camp, I was just below the Great Rock at the Fourtress. I blinked slowly, as my eyes adjusted, and saw a very familiar white she-cat standing in front of me. I gasped.

"Dovepaw!" I exclaimed, rushing over to her and giving her ear a lick. "What happened? Did you die?"

She shook her head. "No, I didn't, Glacierstar. I…something has happened. You need to return to ThunderClan. Quickly!"

"I don't know how!" I exclaimed. "I'm stuck back in time. Dovepaw, what has happened to my Clan?"

Dovepaw hesitated. "It's so hard to explain, I'm sorry…" Her pale green eyes stared up at me. "I'm sure that we'll make it through, leader or not," she meowed. "You, however, should concentrate on saving TigerClan."  
"I'm not exactly pleased with them at the moment," I meowed irritably. "But if there wasn't a TigerClan, there isn't a ThunderClan. I'll do my best, my apprentice," I told her, touching her nose to mine.

Dovepaw nodded. She purred softly, and suddenly my dream was interrupted by the reality I had to face.

"Glacierstar!" Dragonheart was yowling in my ear. "It's LeopardClan! They're attacking! Now!"

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It's kind of short too. And I didn't finish with the Great Clans! Well, I still have a lot to write. Anyway, please leave a review. 


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Right, a bunch of people have been asking a couple questions: one, why would the TigerClan warriors be so upset over the fact that Glacierstar is a leader; and two, what happened to the fourth Clan?

For the first question, though it's sort of a vague explanation…when Glacierstar was wandering around TigerClan territory, wouldn't Reefpaw think it was odd that a Clan leader was over in her territory, where the scents of many cats certainly existed, and not searching for her Clan? She'd have asked her what she was doing over here, when her Clan was elsewhere. Glacierstar would have to tell her that she had been sent from the future.

And the second one…they never mentioned a fourth Clan. So I don't think there should be one. However, if you will read to the end of this chapter, you'll see the beginning of the four original Clans. Kind of hard to explain here, just keep going.

This is probably the longest author's note I've ever written. Oh well. I hope you like this chapter then. It's a bit violent, so you have been warned.

* * *

Chapter Sixteen 

I leapt to my feet. Adrenaline surged through me. From all around, cats were pouring into the camp. We were surrounded.

My tortoiseshell deputy next to me let out a screech and flung herself at the nearest LeopardClan warrior. I watched as she clawed at the gray cat with the speed and strength that her mentor – Graystar – had taught her.

Another LeopardClan warrior was sneaking up on Windpelt, who was already fighting a pair of cats. I leapt onto his back. He yowled with pain and surprise as my claws dug into his skin. I delivered a harsh bite to the neck and he sped out from underneath me, still yowling, all the way toward his territory.

Wolfstar came rushing into the middle of the clash, staring wildly around for Cobaltstar. I watched in alarm as the LeopardClan deputy, Shadefoot, pounced at him. Wolfstar spat and jumped backward to avoid Shadefoot crushing him, but the dark warrior was fast. I was frozen to the spot as the deputy slashed at Wolfstar's face. Blood splattered across a gray pelt.

Wham! I had stayed still too long – a huge golden warrior had crashed into me, pinning me down with enormous paws. The warrior let out a snarl and bent down to bite me in the neck. I kicked him with my back legs and sent him sailing over me – I didn't even know I could do that.

All around me, there were cats screeching and tussling. I couldn't tell who was winning in the crowd. I was stunned when Wolfstar went hurrying past me, taking aside a sleek gray she-cat.

"Yarrowflower, we need help," he panted. The scratch Shadefoot had given him was still bleeding heavily. "Go to LionClan territory and tell him we are being attacked. You have to run like the wind, Yarrowflower, and I know you're fast."

Yarrowflower didn't hesitated. She nodded and spun around, pelting out of the camp.

I heard a terrified scream from behind me and whipped around to see that a blue-gray tom had Reefpaw pinned down. His paws held onto her throat, making her choke and gag. I rushed forward. This was the frist Great Clan cat I had met – I would not let her die.

The huge tom screamed in annoyance as I bit down on around the scruff of his neck, pulling him off Reefpaw. The smaller she-cat gasped on the ground. I slashed at the huge warrior's ears, and he recoiled in pain before jumping at me. I screeched as I was thrown back under those massive paws. I heard pawsteps coming and saw Reefpaw pulling the warrior off me. Scrambling to my feet, I gave the cat's flank a scratch and watched as he pelted into the bushes.

I nodded at Reefpaw. "Thanks."

The blue-gray she-cat shrugged. "It was no big deal." She nervously looked around the battle. "There's no way we can win."

"Yarrowflower went to get LionClan," I told her.

"It will take forever for a patrol to come back. I think that we're really gone this time."

She was probably right. It took quite a few minutes to get to LionClan territory. But if they were all running…

I had to keep fighting. I rushed forward, determined to keep doing damage to the opposing Clan, and was stunned to see Whitecloud – that nice she-cat we had met in the forest – attacking Crystalpaw with long claws. I growled in rage. How could she? I thought she knew that this was wrong, and she didn't want to go against the warrior code.

All sympathy forgotten, I pounced at the white she-cat, who was preparing to deal another blow to Crystalpaw. My attack made Whitecloud crash into the ground, hissing and snarling. She hesitated when her amber eyes locked on me.

I swept my claws forward. They caught on the side of Whitecloud's mouth, drawing blood on the snow-pelted she-cat. Crystalpaw leapt to her feet, biting her neck with her sharp little teeth.

Whitecloud yowled in rage. She slipped away from us and pelted as fast as she could into the forest.

I moved to congratulate Crystalpaw, but felt a horrible blow to my back left leg. A pair of tussling warriors had just crashed into it, crushing my leg beneath their weight. I struggled to stand. It wasn't broken – it had just been twisted. Crystalpaw hurried over.

"Glacierstar – are you all right?"

"Fine," I grunted.

Again, I shot a glance around the camp. My blue eyes widened in dismay. This was the battle where LeopardClan actually meant to wipe TigerClan out. I saw Orangefur lying on his side, his flank dripping blood. We were losing, I realized with a touch of horror. Great StarClan, we _were_ losing.

Another warrior leapt at me, knocking me off balance and into the dirt. His claws scraped at my silver fur, and I yowled in annoyance and pain. The cat let out a hiss as my back claws scraped his underbelly. I rolled out from underneath him, trying to get away, and leapt to my feet. My enemy wouldn't stop attacking me, though. He sped forward, left, then right, attempting to confuse me. I took a step toward him and lashed out with a claw. It hit his paw, tripping him, and I launched onto his back. I delivered a bite to the neck and he too was howling away.

We can't keep this up, I thought, stunned. We're all going to die.

It was then when I heard a furious screech in the distance.

I whipped around and saw one of the last things I wanted to see – Cobaltstar had my best friend, my deputy, pinned down under his huge paws. Dragonheart was in pretty bad shape. A nasty cut shut her left eye, and several scratches ran down her side. I stared in horror as Cobalstar's eyes glinted in triumph, and he bent down near the tortoiseshell she-cat.

"This will happen to you all," he whispered in her ear.

As I expected her to, Dragonheart yowled in rage and fought and twisted, trying so hard to free herself, but Cobaltstar was simply too strong. The blue-gray tom finally dealt his fatal attack.

I looked away. Couldn't bear to see it. A hollow spot in my heart was being carved out. Dragonheart, I knew, was dying.

When I looked back, Cobaltstar had left her. She had become a bloody mess, her throat ripped out. Worst of all, she certainly was not moving. I screamed in horror and pure anger. Dragonheart had been my best friend since we were apprentices – and now she was dead.

I had let her die.

The truth hit me like a stone. Why had I just stood here? I could have knocked over Cobalstar easily, I was strong enough. But instead I had stayed where I was, like a coward.

Dragonheart was dead. It wouldn't register. But she was a few rabbit-leaps away from me, not moving on the ground.

I slowly took a step toward her. I needed to be sure that she was dead. If she was alive, maybe Glistenheart could save her. Maybe. Just before I had reached her, a dozen cats streamed into the clearing, blocking my view of my dead friend. The LionClan cats had arrived. I couldn't feel relieved. Dragonheart…

"Glacierstar, move!" I heard Diamondpaw scream. I jerked my head. A huge ginger warrior was rushing at me. He leapt.

I ducked low to the ground as he sailed over me, but couldn't move when he went to attack me again. He slashed my flank with long, pointed claws. I heard Diamondpaw yowl again and rush over to me, pulling the red tom off of me. He snarled and bit at the LeopardClan warrior, then angrily turned to me.

"What is wrong with you?" he snapped. "Are you trying to be killed?"

I turned my head toward Dragonheart's lifeless body. The silver tom saw what I was looking at. Diamondpaw's eyes widened. He gave my ear a friendly lick. "She'll be happy in StarClan," the gray tom told me.

The LeopardClan warriors were disappearing thanks to the help of LionClan. I was stunned to see that Snowystar himself had come. The enemy warriors were gone except for a certain large blue-gray tom.

"Cobaltstar," growled Wolfstar, taking a step toward him, "we can now defeat you easily. You should think twice about trying to take over the forest next time."

Cobaltstar shook. The coward. He was the one who had killed Dragonheart. Pinned her down beneath his paws and…

Snowystar looked at Wolfstar. "What will you do with him?"

The TigerClan leader considered. Then, "I think it would be wise to keep him as a prisoner in our Clan for a while until we can decide what kind of punishment Cobaltstar should face."

Pantherclaw growled. "Keep him here? We should kill him!"

Wolfstar glared at him. "I am leader here, Pantherclaw," he growled. "I make the decisions. Now, keep an eye on that leader over there."

Pantherclaw scowled and walked behind Cobaltstar, forbidding him to leave.

"He shall be known as Cobaltfur, as he is no longer a leader," added Wolfstar, ignoring Pantherclaw.

TigerClan's leader turned to Snowystar. "We owe so much to you. Without you, there would be no more TigerClan."

Snowystar bowed his head. "I was happy to help."

"We are in your debt."

The white-pelted leader nodded and flicked his tail at his exhausted warriors. They disappeared through the trees in silence.

Wolfstar looked around the clearing. "Is everybody all right?" he called.

No, I thought, the hollow feeling coming again. The ground swayed as I thought of Dragonheart.

"The tortoiseshell cat is dead," called Thymefoot. "The newcomer. Dragonheart."

Reefpaw shot me a glance of alarm and sympathy. I closed my eyes. How could this have happened? Wolfstar stared at me too, and for the first time I saw something else in his eyes – pity.

"Glacierstar, you can share tongues with her first for the last time," he told me softly, and flicked his gray tail at his warriors to move, revealing Dragonheart's body.

I stepped forward slowly and approached my dead friend. The tortoiseshell's state hadn't changed at all. I bent down, pressing my nose against her side, and murmured, "You were my best friend. You'll enjoy StarClan, Dragonheart. I'll be there to join you in a matter of time." I swalowed hard and added, "I'm very sorry I let you die."I gave her ear a lick for the rest of the Clan to share tongues with her as well.

Pantherclaw growled deep in his throat. "This is all very well, but what about _them?_" He jerked his dark head toward Reefpaw and Diamondpaw, who was sitting side by side. "They ran away! They need to be punished!"

"They fought like warriors, Pantherclaw," meowed Wolfstar calmly, stepping away from Dragonheart's body to sit beside me, having just shared tongues with her. "Warriors."

"I thought we were going to punish her too!" He glared at me with Reefpaw and Diamondpaw's amber eyes.

Wolfstar leered at him. "Glacierstar has done a lot for this Clan. Without her suggestion to ask for help, we would all be dead." He nodded toward me. "I am sorry for threatening you, Glacierstar."

I shrugged, too sad to speak.

Pantherclaw snorted. "We could have found a way out without her help."

It was then when Reefpaw lost her temper. I was surprised – just yesterday she had run away from Pantherclaw, but now she was coming up to him. Sticking her face in Pantherclaw's, she snarled,

"You stupid piece of foxdung, don't you see? Glacierstar did more for the Clan than you ever did. In fact, you didn't help at all – I don't think that killing your mate is very helpful, is it?"

Pantherclaw looked horrified. He sent a death glare at Diamondpaw (who had been the only one who knew about this) and stammered, "What are you talking about, apprentice?"

Before Reefpaw could answer, Wolfstar stepped forward, looking confused. "Scarletflower? Pantherclaw, what does she mean?"

Diamondpaw stood next to his sister. "I have held this truth for a very long time," he meowed. Shocked gasps echoed through the clearing – they had heard Diamondpaw speak for the first time. "It was Pantherclaw who killed Scarletflower – our mother." He drew his tail around Reefpaw.

Wolfstar stared at him in horror, then turned his gaze toward Pantherclaw. "Is this true?"

Pantherclaw snarled at him. "Of course it isn't! This stupid apprentice speaks lies!"

"Diamondpaw is _my_ apprentice," snapped Wolfstar. "I know he doesn't lie." Wolfstar glared at him with pure anger. "Why did you do this, Pantherclaw?"

The huge black warrior bared his teeth. "Fine, I did do it," he growled, finding it useless to deny it any longer. "But she…she was starting to fall out with someone else." My mouth worked in absolute shock. Pantherclaw had apparently killed Scarletflower because she was cheating on him. I didn't even think that that was possible…

Wolfstar climbed to his feet and stuck his nose straight in Pantherclaw's face. "You have broken the warrior code in the worst degree," he snarled. "I sentence you to death."

Pantherclaw bared his teeth. "I'd like to see you try."

I suddenly had a great idea. Padding forward, I spoke the first words since I had shared tongues with Dragonheart for the last time. "I have a better idea," I told them.

Wolfstar fixed me with an amber stare. "What's that, Glacierstar?"

I took a breath. "The swamps. There's nothing there, is there? No Clans, no nothing?"

The tom blinked. "Well, no. There's nothing there but marsh."

"In…in my old home, many cats live in a swamp. An entire Clan, to be exact." I looked at Pantherclaw and Cobaltfur. "We could put them in their own Clan with a few other LeopardClan warriors and call it…ShadowClan."

"But that would be giving the enemy power," argued Thymefoot.

I shook my head. "No, because our alliance with LionClan would always defeat them. There should be four Clans."

Wolfstar nodded slowly. "I believe you are right," he meowed. "We will gather a few cats and make a new Clan. We will call it – ShadowClan."

The young medicine cat – Glistenheart – padded forward next to her leader. "StarClan sent me a dream last night," she meowed, "about the marsh Clan that is destined to come, the Clan that lives in a shadow."

TigerClan's leader nodded. "So it is supposed to happen."

Pantherclaw scraped his claws against the earth. "You're not putting me in a new Clan." Cobaltfur nodded defiantly.

Wolfstar glared at him. "You will if you want to survive," he snapped. "A lone cat would die without a Clan."

Pantherclaw scowled and rested his head on his paws.

I watched as Wolfstar padded into the very middle of the clearing. His amber eyes shone proudly as he meowed, "Today, TigerClan has managed to defend itself with the help of LionClan. LeopardClan would have killed us all, but we still survived." With a glare at Pantherclaw, he continued, "But with the…problems…surrounding the former deputy, a new one needs to be named."

Wolfstar paused considering, his head bowed. Then, at last, he mewed, "May StarClan see and approve my choice." He raised his head. "The new deputy of TigerClan is Thymefoot."

The large gray tom stood up, very surprised. A blue-gray she-cat whose name was Rivertail gave his ear an affectionate lick. She was his mate, nursing kits in the nursery.

"Thymefoot, you showed great courage giving orders in the battle with LeopardClan, and you are not afraid to speak your mind. I hope you will do well in honoring TigerClan."

"I will, Wolfstar," promised the gray tom, bowing his head.

Wolfstar wasn't finished. "I also believe two very brave apprentices need to become warriors."

To my great surprise, he flicked his tail at Reefpaw and Diamondpaw, brother and sister. Pantherclaw eyed his own kin with deepest loathing. The two cats, one blue-gray and one silver, padded forward. Diamondpaw looked calm but Reefpaw looked extremely excited. Wolfstar raised his eyes to StarClan and began the ritual I had heard so many times.

"I, Wolfstar, leader of TigerClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have worked hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn."

He slowly lowered his gaze to meet the two apprentices.' "Reefpaw, Diamondpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"

Reefpaw bowed her small head. "I do."

"I do," replied Diamondpaw with calm defiance.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Reefpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Reefpool. StarClan honors your courage and your intelligence, and we welcome you as a new warrior of TigerClan." He bent down to rest his head on the young she-cat's, who was trembling. I felt so proud of her, even though she wasn't my apprentice. Wolfstar gave her ear a lick before turning to Diamondpaw.

"Diamondpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Diamondheart. StarClan honors your loyalty and your bravery, and we welcome you as a full warrior of TigerClan."

Diamondheart bent his head to allow Wolfstar to rest his head on it. The Clan burst into chants.

"Reefpool! Diamondheart! Reefpool! Diamondheart!"

Wolfstar turned toward the two remaining apprentices – Dartpaw and Crystalpaw – and meowed, "Don't think you two have been forgotten. You'll receive your warrior names in no time."

Crystalpaw brightened and let out a purr. "Okay, Wolfstar!" she meowed cheerily, sounding like her old self. Dartpaw merely grunted and looked away. I could tell that he was very jealous.

Reefpool slowly padded over to me as the Clan separated. I knew she couldn't speak, but the look in her amber eyes gave away everything. She was thanking me. Reefpool gave me a lick on the ear and padded away to sit next to her brother, beginning the vigil.

I purred loudly. "They're awesome names," I told them. Diamondheart nodded at me. Mute again, I thought with a chuckle.

I turned toward Dragonheart's lifeless body. Great StarClan, I thought, my heart clenching as all the sadness came back. Dragonheart would no longer be there to wake me up in the morning, or bring me fresh-kill, or to play fight, or make snide remarks about what a great leader I was because I had let her die. I missed her already.

I looked back at Wolfstar's den. They'll figure it out on their own, I thought. TigerClan will become ThunderClan, and LionClan into WindClan, and LeopardClan into RiverClan, just give them time. I could see Thymefoot gathering a patrol to choose a few warriors to help make ShadowClan from LeopardClan. I knew that these four Clans would some day become the Clans that I knew.

Once again, I looked at Dragonheart, still unable to believe that she was dead. I had known her for so long, a few moons after I had come to the Clan as what they believed to be a loner when I was really a Twoleg. Flamestorm was there too, I thought.

Flamestorm! A jolt went through me. She was causing mayhem in my Clan. I had to get back. Then again, I thought, the descendants will take care of it. I knew they would.

_It is time._

Dragonheart's voice. I looked at her, knowing what she meant. It was time to go. I grabbed her around the scruff and dragged her toward the entrance to the camp. "Going to bury her," I told the curious Reefpool and Diamondheart. I would miss them.

I dragged her outside the camp, into the forest. Just to make sure I was far enough away, I kept going until I was out of sight from cats looking out of the entrance. Slowly, I stopped moving Dragonheart, and stared up at StarClan.

I'm ready, I told them. Time to go home.

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Wow, that was kind of long. But a really good chapter. (sniffle) Dragonheart! (cries) Oh yeah, I think I will be writing a story about the rest of Reefpool's life. I don't know when I'll post it, but it might not be for a while. 

Anyway, while all of this is going on, Ebonyclaw and the others are taking care of ThunderClan. I'll tell you how in the next chapter…dun dun dun!

Please review!


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